


weakness ↬ thomas

by alwayslahey



Category: The Maze Runner (Movies), The Maze Runner Series - All Media Types, The Maze Runner Series - James Dashner
Genre: Brother!Newt
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-04
Updated: 2019-01-04
Packaged: 2019-10-04 05:10:28
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 13
Words: 20,843
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17298398
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alwayslahey/pseuds/alwayslahey
Summary: "We have studied subject A6's reactions to fear and the survival requirements in his surroundings and we are very impressed. But, now, we must study his emotional reactions, along with that of our other subjects."↬Alice went into the maze twice. Once with her brother, once with her boyfriend. It was cruel, sure, but it confirmed WCKD's suspicions - for a number of boys in Group A, Alice was their weakness.↬Trial 1: In Progress.↬i don't own the maze runner, in case that wasn't obvious





	1. T H E M A Z E R U N N E R

_part 1 - the maze_


	2. [00] prologue i

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "We have studied subject A6's reactions to fear and the survival requirements in his surroundings and we are very impressed. But, now, we must study his emotional reactions, along with that of our other subjects."  
> ↬  
> Alice went into the maze twice. Once with her brother, once with her boyfriend. It was cruel, sure, but it confirmed WCKD's suspicions - for a number of boys in Group A, Alice was their weakness.  
> ↬  
> Trial 1: In Progress.  
> ↬  
> i don't own the maze runner, in case that wasn't obvious

"Am I right in thinking you have allowed me to inform Thomas of the next part of our plans, Alice?" I nodded, clutching his hand tighter. Dr Ava Paige smiled as us, nodding, "Well done, you know we shouldn't share test information with unauthorised persons. I trust that you have not enlightened your brother?" I nodded again. "Excellent." She turned to Thomas, tucking a piece of blonde hair back that seemed to have escaped her bun, "Now, Thomas, as you remember, today is the day we send Alice and her brother into the glade."

Of course he remembered, he had been begging me not to go through with it for weeks. He was terrified of me getting hurt. It seemed that Thomas was more scared for this trial than I was and, though I wished he wasn't in such a state over it, I knew I would have been the same if the roles had been reversed.

Once he nodded, Ava continued, "We have studied subject A6's reactions to fear and the survival requirements in his surroundings and we are very impressed. But, now, we must study his emotional reactions, along with that of our other subjects." She smiled at me, "Alice, here, will be the variable of that experiment. For the first month, one subject was sent into the glade. Tomorrow morning, Alice and her brother will be sent into the glade. In exactly one month, a further three subjects will also be sent into the glade. The following day, Alice will be collected from the maze in a staged 'accident'. We will then bring her back to our laboratories and study the reaction of the other subjects." Thomas looked horrified, as had I when the plans were first told to me. However, she continued, "Three years from that date, Alice and yourself will be sent into the Glade together. Alice will recognise Newt as her brother, but she will not remember anything before waking up. She will not remember being in the glade before, and she will not remember being here at WICKED." Thomas opened his mouth to speak, eyes wide, but Ava stopped him, "No, Thomas. She won't remember you. You won't remember her, either."

He looked to me, scoffing, "You don't honestly think I'm going to let you go through with this, do you?"

I sighed, "Thomas-"

"No, Alice, stop." He shook his head. "You can't do that to your brother. You'll  _break_  him. Plus, what if you get hurt? It's dangerous, Al. I won't let you do it."

I closed my tearful eyes, squeezing them shut for a moment. I leant in slightly closer to him, lowering my voice. "I don't have a choice, Tom," I barely whispered.

He sighed, looking to Ava, "Next month, when she gets back, will her memory still be wiped? Will she not remember me then?"

She shook her head, "Alice will gain back her memory when she comes back after the first month. She will remember everything before the glade and everything that happened in the trial."

He nodded, still clearly on edge. A stray tear escaped from my eye and he caught it with his thumb, stroking my cheekbone gently. I turned around, facing her again, "Will it hurt?"

She shook her head, "You're in safe hands, Alice." Ava stood from her chair, smiling at us again before announcing, "I'll give the two of you a last moment. Alice, when you are ready, you may go through." She nodded to the door that she wasn't stood by. "Your brother is waiting for you." With that, she left.

Immediately, Thomas kissed me. It was gentle, nothing more than a sweet kiss, but it said everything that was needed. He held my face in his hands after we pulled away, shaking his head in disbelief at the circumstances. I was properly crying now.

I sniffed, trying to compose myself. "It's only a month," I assured him, partly trying to assure myself, "We can do a month, we'll be fine."

"Yeah," he nodded, but he was unsure of it. We both were.

I sighed, rubbing my hands up his arms, "I need to go."

He pulled me to him, kissing my forehead. "I'll see you soon," he whispered. I nodded and left silently.

Newt looked up as I entered the room, "Hey, come here." He pulled me into a hug while I continued to cry into his shoulder. "What's wrong?" he whispered into my ear. "You were fine earlier, what's happened?"

"I don't want to forget, Newt." I shook my head. "I can't, I'm terrified."

"Ally, I'll be right there with you, you'll be okay. Hey, she told me that we'll remember each other." He chuckled, "Well, obviously we won't remember being together, but she said we'll remember that we're brother and sister. That's good, yeah?" I nodded. He smiled, kissing my forehead, "I'm not going anywhere."

 _Yeah_ , I thought.  _You're not, but I am._

_\---_  
  


"I think we should split up." Newt laughed at my suggestion. "I'm serious! We've got three greenies back there; Alby can't take care of them all on his own. If we split up, we can cover more ground and be back sooner."

He shook his head, "No way, I am not letting you go off on your own-"

"Why not?" I raised my eyebrows at him. "I'm not a  _child_ , Newt. I can take care of myself."

Sighing, he passed me one of the bottle of water, "Make sure you're back on time."

I nodded, kissing his cheek before turning to jog down the path on my left. We knew it was a maze by now, that much was clear. But why? What motive could there possibly be to trap six kids in a maze? I was getting more and more desperate to find a way out as the days went by.

I took the cap off my bottle, raising it to my lips as I rounded the corner, but I stopped as I was face to face with a woman.  _I was supposed to be the only girl there_.

Her white coat was open, flapping in the slight wind, and her blonde hair was twisted tightly into a bun on the back of her head. She smiled at me, _"Welcome back, Alice."_


	3. [00] prologue ii

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "We have studied subject A6's reactions to fear and the survival requirements in his surroundings and we are very impressed. But, now, we must study his emotional reactions, along with that of our other subjects."  
> ↬  
> Alice went into the maze twice. Once with her brother, once with her boyfriend. It was cruel, sure, but it confirmed WCKD's suspicions - for a number of boys in Group A, Alice was their weakness.  
> ↬  
> Trial 1: In Progress.  
> ↬  
> i don't own the maze runner, in case that wasn't obvious

_Antiseptic_. I scrunched my nose at the smell –  _there was a tube in my nose_. Opening my eyes, I squinted in the bright light.  _What was on my arm?_

"Hey," I looked in the direction of the noise.  _Thomas_. He was sat at the side of the bed, holding my hand. He looked awful. "Hey, you're okay," he whispered.  _I wasn't_. I tried to breathe, sucking in as much air as I could but that  _damn tube was in the way_. "Al."  _The tube_. "Alice, you're okay."  _But I wasn't_. I tried to speak –  _no, I wasn't_  – but the tube- "Alice, look at me."  _I needed to get this tube out of my nose_. "No, no, no, come on." His hands pulled mine away from where they were wrapping around the chord.

"Newt," I whimpered, but it was more of an empty rasp. Thomas' hands were still around mine but he wasn't exerting much force against me, out of fear of hurting me I suppose. I could then remove the tube, lifting it over my head and rushing to get the wires off my arm. I scrambled out of bed in the opposite direction to Thomas, bare feet cold on the tiles.

He stopped me at the end of the bed, after I tried to get around to the door, hands on my shoulders, "Alice, stop-"

"He thinks I'm dead," I gasped, "Thomas, he thinks I'm dead-"

"I know," he nodded, "I know, sweetheart." He tried to pull me into him, arms going around my shaking frame, but I pushed against him.

"No."  _Get to the camera room_. I tried to move from under his grip, "No, I need-"

"Shh, come on, Al."

"No, I need to see-"

"Alice, you can't do anything." I looked up at him, shaking my head and murmuring, mainly to myself. "Shh, come on." He pulled me into his chest, holding me up as my legs weakened and he cradled my head in his hand. He whispered to me gently, his breath warm on my ear as I spluttered into his t-shirt. "I know, Ally. It's okay, I got you."

"Tommy," I whimpered, lifting my head from his chest.

"I know," he nodded. He looked upset too – he was good friends with Newt, after all. "I know, Al. But, I promise, it's all gonna help." We still didn't know what we were helping; we just hoped it was worth it. "Remember," he prompted.

I sniffed, nodding, "WICKED is good."

\---

"I know it was years ago," he started, "But, if you remember, does it hurt?"

I nodded. I saw his jaw clench. "I'm not going to lie to you, Tom, it's bloody horrific."

He let out a shaky breath, hand running over his face. I sat down on one of the beds, head between my knees. "How long do we have?"

I looked up at the clock, swallowing thickly, "Not long."

He sat down next to me, lifting up my chin with one finer and kissing me sweetly. It felt too much like déjà vu. He stroked the underside of my face, "I can't believe they're making you do this again."

I took his hands from my face, holding them in my lap, "You're going in there too, Thomas."

"I'm not worried about me," he whispered.

"I'm going to forget about you completely."

"I know."

"We won't remember anything-"

" _I know_."

I shook my head, "I can't imagine being a stranger to you."

He smiled slightly, "I don't think we'll be  _strangers_ , Al." He gestured between the two of us, "This can't just  _go away_. There'll still be  _something_ , there  _has_  to be."

The door opened behind us. A young man walked in, face stoic as he told us, "It's time to go."

Thomas sat back as I lay down, before getting off the bed and crouching down next to me after I lay back. He rested his hand on my head, stroking my forehead before standing. He kissed my hair once more, "I love you, Ally."

I smiled as best I could, "I love you too."

Thomas lay down on the bed next to me, reaching across to hold my hand as more doctors entered the room. A tear fell from my eye.

_Please don't make me leave him like I left my brother._


	4. [01] together

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "We have studied subject A6's reactions to fear and the survival requirements in his surroundings and we are very impressed. But, now, we must study his emotional reactions, along with that of our other subjects."  
> ↬  
> Alice went into the maze twice. Once with her brother, once with her boyfriend. It was cruel, sure, but it confirmed WCKD's suspicions - for a number of boys in Group A, Alice was their weakness.  
> ↬  
> Trial 1: In Progress.  
> ↬   
> i don't own the maze runner, in case that wasn't obvious

_I think I'm dead_ , I thought,  _I'm most probably dead._

It was loud. It sounded like metal – clanging consistently, so hard it made my head pound. It was cold,  _freezing_ , and I wrapped my arms around myself. Pushing my feet down, I scooted back along the floor until I hit what felt to be a corner. Squeezing my eyes shut and opening them again, I tried to make out my surroundings.  _I couldn't see a thing_.

I pulled my arms up, feeling the walls either side of me. I hooked my fingers into the holes. It was like some kind of crate. My fingers clenched around the metal and I screwed my eyes shut again, trying desperately to breathe steadily.  _I most definitely was not dead_.

_Right, Alice, think. What's going on around you?_ I pulled myself up so I was standing, wobbling as I got to my feet.  _The crate was moving_. There was a breeze.  _It was moving fast, and it was moving upwards_. If the crate had come from somewhere – wherever I had got in – it must have been going somewhere, right? So, if I wait until it stops, I can get help on the other side.  _No, no, don't be so stupid!_ That could be dangerous, who knows what's waiting on the other side? I needed to be prepared, ready to defend myself. I felt around in front of me. Maybe if I could-

"Somebody help me!"  _That wasn't me_.

I let out a cry, stumbling backward into the corner again. I fumbled round, trying to find something to aid my protection but failing miserably. I took a deep breath. "Who's there?" I croaked _. Where had my voice gone?_

I heard movement, most probably the person startled by the sound of my voice. "I-I'm sorry." It was a man. He sounded like he was crying.  _That makes two of us_. "I don't- I don't know what's happening." I heard him move again and I tried to push myself further into the corner, still wary of him. His breathing was heavy. "Um, I don't know how I- how we got here." I felt him touch my arm and I cried out, arms moving to push him out of the way, but it was a weak shove. "No, no, I swear! I swear, don't know what's happening." I could hear his breath shake. "I know you're scared - I'm scared too, okay?"

It was getting brighter. Lights were flying past us, down to wherever we had come from. I looked up to see the man standing in front of me. No, not a man – a  _boy_. He was taller than me, head a few inches above me, despite the fact that he looked to be around my age. His hair was quite messy, dark, and his eyes were glowing caramel when they caught the light. He was wearing a blue top, with long sleeves and several buttons at the neck. It was then that I looked down at my own clothes: my trousers were the same as his – brown – and my top was similar, but it was a lighter grey. I was wearing boots – brown boots.

"Who are you?" I whispered.

He shook his head, "I-I don't know."

"How do you-"

"I can't remember anything. Not my name, not-not where I'm from, how I got here – anything." He looked me in the eye, "Do you remember anything?"

I nodded my head, "My name is Alice, but that's all I've got."

He looked as if he was studying me. "I feel like recognise something about you, Alice."

I nodded, "I know what you mean." There was something about him – something familiar, something  _home_ -like. But I couldn't place my finger on it. I didn't know why, but I felt comfortable with him. After seeing his face, I felt less like I needed to protect myself from him.

But I was still scared. I may have trusted this mystery boy, but I was still in this crate. And it was starting to move even faster.

He must've heard my breathing pick up, because he took my hand, "Hey, we can do this together." I look down at our hands intertwined. "I don't know who you are, but I feel like I should. So, no matter what, we stick together, okay?" I nodded.

He pulled me to the centre of the crate, so we could look around us. There were wooden boxes around us, but I had no idea what was inside. It seemed we were in some sort of mine shaft, and I guessed that the passing lights were windows, although they were flying by too fast for me to see through. I looked up. There was a slight red glow that seemed to be coming closer and closer.

"We're going to hit the top," I gasped, and the boy followed my line of vision. He gripped my hand tighter, the two of us bracing ourselves for an impact that never came.

We stopped moving suddenly, the two of us falling to the floor at the sudden jolt. I pushed myself back into the corner again, fear leading me to cower behind one of the boxes in anticipation of what was to come. The ceiling parted into two – sliding apart like doors and allowing the bright light from outside to pass through. I lifted my arms over my face, blocking what seemed to be the sun as I willed my eyes to adjust to the brightness. I heard a thud as someone jumped into the lift, crouching in front of the boy (who had remained in the centre of the crate). I sank back behind the box.

"Day one, Greenie," the figure announced. "Rise and shine." The two of them were hauled out and, when I peeked over the top of the wood, I saw who had lifted them.

There were more boys – dozens of them, in fact. They all seemed the same age as us, give or take a couple of years, and they were all dressed in similar attire. The boy from the lift – the Greenie, as they had called him – was on the floor, surrounded by the boys stood above him. He scrambled to his feet, darting through a gap in the circle and sprinting.  _So much for sticking together_.

"We've got a runner!" someone called and they all laughed, cheering after him and mocking his obvious fear. He hit the floor after a moment, stumbling and rolling across the ground before stopping with a thud.

I stood slowly, coming out from behind the box and walking to the edge of the lift. I stood on the two boxes against the wall, pulling myself over the edge and onto the ground where the group of boys were facing away from me. It looked like we were on a farm. The ground was grass, some parts dry and brown, and there were some huts scattered around, along with plants and animals in a corner. The entire place was surrounded by huge stone walls.

"Hey, who's that?" I heard a shout and I froze, almost trembling as every single pair of eyes cast onto me. I felt sick as their faces seemed to merge into one large depiction of confusion.

One boy came out of the crowd, raising a hand to shield his eyes from the sun as he squinted at me, "Alice?"

My brows furrowed, " _Newt?_ "


	5. [02] brother

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "We have studied subject A6's reactions to fear and the survival requirements in his surroundings and we are very impressed. But, now, we must study his emotional reactions, along with that of our other subjects."  
> ↬  
> Alice went into the maze twice. Once with her brother, once with her boyfriend. It was cruel, sure, but it confirmed WCKD's suspicions - for a number of boys in Group A, Alice was their weakness.  
> ↬  
> Trial 1: In Progress.  
> ↬   
> i don't own the maze runner, in case that wasn't obvious

I took in the boy before me. His clothes were dirty – filthy, in fact. His skin was too; face dark with dirt despite how pale he was. His blonde hair was messy, blowing about in the slight breeze.  _This boy was my brother._

"Newt," I shook my head, "What are you-"

"Alice, bloody hell." He ran forward, grabbing hold of me and crushing me in a tight hug. I hugged him back just as tight, chuckling slightly in disbelief. I closed my eyes, allowing myself to relax for just a moment. "We thought you were dead," he whispered.  _What?_

I pulled back, screwing up my face at him, "You  _what?_ "

"We could've sworn you were dead, Al. There's no way-" He shook his head. "How did you-"

"Newt," I stopped him, "What are you talking about?"

"What?" His tearful eyes squinted again.

"Alright, let's get these guys inside." A slightly older boy had brought the Greenie over to us, placing a hand on Newt's shoulder. His skin was dark and his hair was short. He spoke with authority. "Then we can try and work out what's going on."

Newt nodded after a moment, leading us to one of the shacks. The Greenie and I sat down on a bench inside, Newt stood in front of us. After a minute, the darker skinned boy entered with three other boys.

He crouched down in front of me, "Alice, you recognise Newt?"

I nodded, "Of course I do – he's my brother."

He looked to the other boys before looking back to me, "Do you remember anything else about him? Any time you've been with him, anything-"

"No," I stopped him. "I know who he is, he's my brother. But I don't remember anything else." I squeezed my eyes shut, "I can't- I can't remember-"

"Okay, that's okay," he assured me, placing a hand on my knee. I moved my leg from under his touch, sitting up _. I still wasn't comfortable here_. "I'm Alby," he told me. He then pointed to each of the three boys he had brought in with him, "That's Gally, Minho and Ben." He looked back at me. "So, you recognise your brother?" I nodded. "Do you recognise us?" he gestured between the four of them.

I squinted, "Should I?"

Two of the boys behind him looked disappointed with my answer. In fact, Ben almost looked hurt. One of them, however – Gally, I think – was just staring at me. He looked angry.

Alby sighed, "Do you even recognise where you are?"

These guys were making me panic. "Do you think I'd be in this state if I did?" I gestured to my tear-stained face, rather manically.

"Alright, okay," Alby held up his hands at my sudden agitation.

"She said she doesn't remember, so leave her alone!" The Greenie sounded defensive and I mentally thanked him for saving me from all the other questions they probably planned to ask.

Alby regained his tone of authority, "We're just trying to figure out what's going on, Greenie," he smirked slightly, "No one's gonna hurt your friend."

I sniffed, wrapping my arms around myself, "Newt, you said you thought I was dead." I heard him sigh. "What happened?"

Alby gave me a sad smile, "Let me show you guys something."

The three boys he had brought in left and Alby took Newt, the Greenie and I to one of the large stone walls. Stood at the bottom, we couldn't see the top. It scared me how we were trapped in here, and I could see it scared the Greenie too.

On the wall, dozens of names had been carved into the stone. Alby pointed to it, "Every time we get a new greenie, their name goes on the wall."

I furrowed my brows, "Why are some of them crossed out?"

Alby sighed. "We do that to every glader we lose. Luckily, there hasn't been many, but..." he trailed off.

Newt sent an awkward glance my way and I looked in front of me. My name was already on there. I traced my finger along the line that cut through my name, ruling it out like a couple of the others. I shook my head, tearing up again, "You thought I was dead. What happened? How I have I been here before?"

Alby sighed once more, "Alright, around three years ago I came up just like you two: woke up in the box, could only remember my name, and didn't remember anything before. But there was no one here when I got here. I was on my own." I shook my head. I couldn't imagine how terrifying that must have been. "I made do, I looked after myself, and then exactly a month later the box came up again, this time with two people in it." He locked eyes with me, "Alice, it was you and Newt." I looked to my brother, confused, but he just nodded at me. "Another month went by and the box then sent up three more people – that was Gally, Minho and Ben, who you met before. We assumed that was the pattern; each month, the number of people in the box would go up by one." He shook his head. "But they just sent us up one-by-one after that. The pattern stopped after you went missing."

I still didn't remember any of this. "What happened?" the Greenie asked.

Alby pointed to the gap in the wall behind us, "That, out there, is a maze. Every day, the walls open at dawn and close again at dusk. Minho and Ben are what we call 'runners' – they go out in the maze every day to look around and help figure how to get out of this place." He sighed, "During your month here that was yours and Newt's job. But, the day after the other three got here, you and Newt went into the maze and you never came out." I looked to Newt for an explanation but he seemed to be trying very hard not to cry. "Your brother said you just disappeared and he never saw you again. So we presumed you dead."

"How did you know that?" I asked. "Surely you must've thought there was a chance I was just lost? It is a maze after all-"

"Alice, you've been gone for three years," he reminded me.

"Besides," Newt mumbled, eyes still watery, "No one survives a night in the maze." At our confusion, he continued. "There are these... things out there – we call them grievers. Of course, no one's ever seen one and lived to tell about it, but they're out there." He was staring at the doors to the maze, clearly lost in thought. I could see the Greenie was following his gaze, turning to walk towards the door. "Not a chance, Green Bean." Newt stopped him with a hand on his shoulder, "You're not going in there."

"But what if I want to be a runner?"

Newt squinted at him, "Have you lost your mind? No one  _wants_ to be a runner."

"Besides," Alby stopped them, "Due to Alice's circumstances, we haven't been able to start this properly. Can you tell me your name?"

The Greenie shook his head, "I can't remember anything. Why can't I remember anything?"

"Hey, relax," Alby put his hands on his shoulders, "It's normal, it happens to us all. You'll get your name back in a day or two – it's the one thing they let us keep." His face fell at his last statement but he soon picked it up again, plastering a smile over it. "How about," he looked to the Greenie, "I show you where everything is and we can go and find Chuck." He smiled at Newt and I, "Leave you two to have a little catch up."

He led the Greenie away from us, leaving my brother and me alone. He sighed, looking across to me, "You really don't remember being here?"

I shook my head, "First thing I remember is waking up in the box."

I slid down the wall, screwing my eyes closed and squeezing my head between my knees once I was sat down. "This is mad." I heard him hum in affirmation. I shook my head, lifting it up from my knees, "You've been here for  _three years?_ "

Nodding, he sat down next to me, "Three years thinking you were dead."

"How can I remember that you're my brother but still not remember being with you before?" It just didn't make any sense. My eyes started to water, "I'm so sorry I did that to you, Newt."

"Hey, no," he stopped me, wrapped an arm around me and pulling me so my head was on his shoulder. "It's not your fault, Al. You're here now, and that's all that matters."

I sniffed, "My name's crossed out on the wall."

He smiled, "We'll write you another one."

"Hey, Newt!" We looked to who had called after my brother. It was a younger boy, maybe twelve or thirteen, with curly brown hair. He had a podgy belly and a cheeky grin. He was, by far, the youngest here.

"He's so young," I whispered as he walked over, Alby and Greenie trailing behind him.

"You and I weren't much older when we came up," Newt told me and I looked at him in disbelief. "Maybe a year older or so, but we were similar." He smiled as the boy got closer, raising his voice a little. "Chuck, here, was last month's Green Bean. I bet it feels good to not be the newbie anymore, doesn't it?"

Chuck nodded enthusiastically, "I've finally been promoted!"

I felt Newt touch my arm, "I'd best get back to work with the track-hoes – I'm there when Alby doesn't need me."

I furrowed my brows at him, "Track-hoes?"

He chuckled, "Alby'll tell you." He placed his hands on my shoulders, kissing my forehead. He lingered a moment before standing back, looking me over for a few seconds and then rubbing my arm. "It's good to have you back, Ally," he told me, before walking away.  _What was with the limp?_

"This way, Alice," Alby smiled at me. I followed him with Chuck and the Greenie as we walked through the 'glade' as they call it. He laughed slightly, "It feels a bit strange telling you all of this, seeing as though you helped me set up the place, but I guess I better get used to it." I felt awful.  _What had I put these boys through?_

I shook my head, "How are you not freaking out?"

He shrugged, "Someone's gotta keep everyone nice and calm." Smiling, he pointed to two shacks next to each other, "We eat here and we sleep here." He then whirled around pointing to, what seemed to be, crops and plants. "We grow most of our own food, over there. The people who do that are the track-hoes." He nodded at me, "That's where your brother is now. Newt's my second in command so, when I'm not around, he's in charge. But, when I don't need him, he helps out with the track-hoes." He pointed to the lift we had come up in, still open in the middle of the ground, "Anything else we need, the Box provides. The rest is up to us."

The Greenie squinted, "So there is someone sending us up here? Who is it? Who put us here?"

Alby shook his head, "That, we don't know." He stopped as we reached the bottom of a ladder. It led up to a wooden platform, at least ten feet above my head. It seemed to be some kind of lookout point. He smirked, "I hope you two aren't afraid of heights."

Chuck went up first, Greenie behind him, in front of me and Alby behind. The view from the top was astounding. It was only from this point of the glade that you could see how big it truly was – there were acres upon acres of land in here, and yet we were so small.

Alby smiled at how I admired the place, "This is all we've got. We've worked hard for it. If you guys respect this place, then we'll all get along just fine."

The Greenie was looking at the doors again, "What's it like out there?"

Sighing, Alby lent in closer to the two of us, "We only have three rules. First, do your part – no time for freeloaders. Second, never harm another glader – none of this works unless we have trust. But most importantly: never go beyond those walls." He spoke very quietly to the boy now, "Do you understand me, Greenie?" I felt him take my hand, nodding wordlessly. Alby smiled, standing back, "Then I think we'll be just fine."

When we got down from the lookout, Alby clapped Chuck on the shoulder, "Now, I need to start unloading the supplies from the box, but Chuckie here'll introduce you to our sleeping arrangements."

Chuck took us to a shack that he called the 'homestead' and started hanging up two new hammocks, to add the dozens already in there. "It's basically the same story for all of us – we wake up in the box, Alby gives us the tour, then here we are. Don't worry, you're already doing better than I did, I clunked my pants three times before they lifted me out of the box." He smiled as he tightened the rope on the hammock he was tying. "There we go – Greenie, you're next to me and, Alice, you're next to him. You're also right by Newt!" He turned around, grinning at me, "Hey, are you really Newt's sister?"

I smiled, "Yeah, I am."

"That's so cool," he gushed, "I don't even know if I have any siblings!" I'm sure he was saying something else, but I was focusing on the Greenie, who was walking away from us. I followed his line of vision: he was walking to the doors again.

"Hey," I called, jogging to keep up with him, "We're not allowed in there, you know that."

"I just wanna see," he mumbled.

"Dude, you're gonna get in huge trouble if you're seen near there," Chuck urged, both of us jogging behind the Greenie as he got closer to the doors. "It's not safe, especially not now!"

As if from nowhere, someone came barrelling into him. The two of them hit the ground with the thud and, when the guy stood up again, I saw it was Gally. "We gotta stop meeting like this, Greenie." He picked him up by the collar of his shirt, yanking him up roughly so that he was standing.

"Hey!" I shouted, running over and grabbing the Greenie's arm. "Leave him alone! He was just looking!"

"Pipe down, Girlie," he spat, finger pointing in my face, "I just saved the kid's life."  _What was his problem with me?_

"Get off me!" the Greenie yelled, pushing away from Gally in a panic.

Gally held up his hands, "Alright, calm, calm!"

The Greenie was swinging his arms around, backing up and I was behind him, slowly moving further into the doors without even realising. "What the hell is wrong with you guys?" he cried.

"Just calm down, alright?"

"No!" a crowd was starting to form now. There were a  _lot_  of people staring. I felt sick.

"It's for your own good," I heard Alby shout.

"You can't just keep me here!"

"Tom-" I started, but I stopped myself.  _Tom?_

"We can't let you leave!"

"Why not?"

"Alice, move!" I felt two arms grab me before I was crushed into Newts chest, his arms wrapping around me tightly after pulling me out of the doors. It was a good job, too, because they started to move.

I loud growl started as stone churned behind them. My hands lifted to cover my ears as I cringed at the sound. The towering doors moved closer together, eventually stopping when they made contact. I gasped –  _we were trapped in here._

Gally walked over to the Greenie, scowling, "Next time, I'm gonna let you leave."

Alby rubbed his shoulder, "Welcome to the glade."

"You alright?" Newt asked me and I turned around, nodding.

"I'm fine," I assured, looking back to the Greenie again. "You go on, I'll come and find you in a minute." He nodded and left.

The Greenie was still staring at the closed doors. I walked up behind him, touching his arm gently. He looked down at me, but then turned back to the doors.

"Do you think we're safe here?" he mumbled after a moment. "I mean, do you trust them?"

"I trust my brother," I told him. "I'm not sure about the others."

He almost smiled, "Your brother seems nice. I trust him." He turned to face me, "I trust you."

I smiled, "And I trust you." I chuckled slightly, rubbing my hands up his arms, "I probably shouldn't, mind you – I barely know you. But I do, I trust you."

He smiled back at me; face just inches away from mine despite his height. I couldn't seem to move my gaze from his, completely lost in the light of his eyes.

"Oi!" we heard and we jumped, spinning around to look across the glade. Newt stood, chuckling at us, "Are you two coming, or what? This party is for you, after all."

I looked to the Greenie, "What  _party_?"


	6. [03] wimp

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "We have studied subject A6's reactions to fear and the survival requirements in his surroundings and we are very impressed. But, now, we must study his emotional reactions, along with that of our other subjects."  
> ↬  
> Alice went into the maze twice. Once with her brother, once with her boyfriend. It was cruel, sure, but it confirmed WCKD's suspicions - for a number of boys in Group A, Alice was their weakness.  
> ↬  
> Trial 1: In Progress.  
> ↬   
> i don't own the maze runner, in case that wasn't obvious

"We do this every time we get a new Greenie," Newt told the two of us, later on. "Of course, we've got two this month, plus Alice is back which is a little strange, so our 'Welcome to the glade' routine went to clunk. But this is the one thing we can keep the same – your welcome party."

I turned around; looking over the log we were leant against to where the other boys were stood. "Light him up!" Alby shouted, before several of the boys threw their fire-lit torches at the tower of wood in the centre of their circle. It lit up in a flash – flames crawling up in swaying tongues. It was a nice little gathering really: boys were chatting and laughing in their own little groups, drinking jars of a probable alcohol while a few of them brawled playfully in the corner.

"I feel like I've not given you a proper welcoming, Greenie," my brother addressed the boy on the other side of me, "What with Alice's surprise and all. You've had a hell of a first day. Here," he passed his jar across me, handing it to him, "Put some hair on your chest."

The Greenie took it, sipping and not even swallowing before spluttering and spitting the liquid out onto the grass between his legs. "Oh my god!" he cried, disgustedly wiping at his mouth, "What  _is_  that?"

Newt chuckled, "I don't even know."

I scoffed, putting my hand out, "Give it here." The Greenie's eyes widened and I'm sure Newt tried to protest, but I scowled, "I'm not made of glass, boys." I nodded towards the jar in Greenie's hand once more, "Let me try it." He handed me the jar, squinting as he waited for my reaction, and I took a sip. It was bitter, sure, and quite gross, to be honest, but it wasn't  _that_  bad. I handed it back to Newt, scrunching up my nose at Greenie, "You're just a wimp."

He looked shocked at my sudden insult and Newt laughed, shaking his head, "I don't even know what's in it – it's Gally's recipe, it's a trade secret."

I scowled at the mention of the boy and Greenie scoffed, "Yeah, well, he's still an arsehole." I nodded.

"Hey," Newt leant across me, nudging the Greenie, "He saved your life today."

"That doesn't mean he's allowed to be nasty to me!" I protested. "What's his problem?"

"Gally's never been the nicest, don't get me wrong, but he's never been this horrible to  _any_  of us," Newt explained. He shook his head, "He wasn't like this with you last time." I squinted:  _what had changed in the last three years to make this kid hate me?_  "However," he continued, "He still saved the Greenie's life. Trust me, the maze is a dangerous place," he trailed off, gazing at the walls.

"We're trapped here, aren't we?" the Greenie mumbled, after a short silence.

Newt nodded slowly, "For the moment. But, remember how we mentioned the runners?" The both of us nodded. "Well, that's them over there." He pointed over the log behind us, at a group of boys sat together. "That guy in the middle, there," I looked: dark haired, tall, and possibly the only guy without a jar of that foul liquid, "That's Minho. He's the keeper of the runners." He turned back round to us, "Now, every morning, when the doors open, they run in the maze – mapping it, memorizing it, trying to find a way out."

"How long have they been looking?" the Greenie asked.

He looked at me awkwardly, "Since Alice went missing."

I froze, "But that means-"

"Three years," he nodded.

I shook my head, baffled, "And they haven't found anything?"

"It's a lot easier said than done," he laughed slightly. He pointed upwards, "Hear that?" The two of us stopped, listening carefully. It sounded like a deep churning, stone against stone, but it was distant.

I gasped, "It's moving."

Newt froze, "How did you-"

"How is the maze moving?" I pushed.

He shook his head, "It changes every night."

The Greenie looked like he couldn't believe what he was hearing, "How is that even possible?" His eyebrows furrowed – it was cute.  _Oh god, Alice..._

Newt smirked, "You can ask the people who put us in here, if you ever meet the bastards." His face dropped as he sighed, "Listen, the truth is, the runners are the only ones who really know what's out there." He stopped. "Well – they're the strongest and fastest of us all."

I was confused at how he corrected himself, but then I remembered – Newt had been out there,  _with me_. Why did he get so weird talking about it?

I squinted at him, "Why aren't you a runner anymore, Newt?"

He froze, taken aback by my sudden inquiry.

"Greenie!" We looked up, seeing Alby waving at the other boy next to me. He excused himself, standing and walking over to the glade's leader. Newt and I remained silent.

"You have a limp," I pointed out, after a moment. "What happened?"

He sighed, "It's-"

"Don't lie to me, Newt."

He smiled, sadly, "Al, we both know I can't lie to you – never have been able to." He took a deep breath before starting, "I'll be honest: I was a mess when we lost you. I just- I couldn't see the point anymore, y'know?" I didn't. "There's uh- there's ivy growing on the walls inside the maze." He shook his head, "It was stupid, I know that now, but... you were gone, Al. You were really gone."

I gasped, trying to blink the water away from my eyes, "Newt, I-"

"So," he persisted, swallowing thickly, "I tried to jump. The ivy only goes half way up the wall, but it's high enough to put me out of my misery." He half laughed, "Failed though, didn't I – my leg got caught and I never hit the ground."

I sniffed, kissing his cheek, "I'm so, so sorry Newt."

"No, Alice-"

"Newt, you tried to kill yourself because of me!" He flinched. "You- you thought I was dead."

He placed a hand on my knee, rubbing it slightly, "It's not your fault, Al." He shook his head, "Someone put us in here for a reason, and they obviously took you away for a reason too, no matter how cruel it was." I shook my head, protesting, but he hushed me, kissing my temple. He smiled after a moment, standing and holding out his hand for me. I took it, squinting at him as he pulled me up. "That's enough moping for one night. Besides, you're supposed to be the guest of honour!" He started pulling me to the rest of the boys, "Let me show you around."

"But the Greenie-"

"Green Bean will be fine, Alby will have introduced him to everyone he needs to know." He pointed to the group of boys in the corner, "Now, there we've got the builders." They were all fairly large boys, clearly chosen for the job for the strength. They were watching Gally shoving another boy, cheering him on. "They're good with their hands but there's not a lot going on upstairs," Newt chuckled as he tapped the side of his head. "And then we've got Winston," he pointed to a boy stood near them, "He's the keeper of the slicers. Oh!" He stopped as two boys walked past us, "These are the two med-jacks, Clint and Jeff."

One of them smiled at us, "Hey, Newt, what's up?"

After they passed, we started walking again. "They spend most of their time bandaging up the slicers," Newt explained, "But they're there if you've got a problem." I could see the Greenie nearby, stood awkwardly against a tree and watching Alby laugh with a few other boys. I could feel Newt watching me. "Go on," he nudged my shoulder, "Check in with him. I'll come and find you in a bit."

I nodded and he gave me his jar of Gally's disgusting beverage, which I took before walking away from him to join the Greenie. He was still stood against the tree, now watching the dancing light of the fire. I stood next to him, leaning half on the tree and half on his arm. With anyone else, it probably would have been too close. But it didn't seem to be too much of a problem. We kept a comfortable silence, gazing at the movement of the fire.

After a short while, I lifted my jar up, "Fancy another drink?"

He screwed up his face, "Are you serious? That stuff's awful." He scoffed, "I bet Gally's trying to poison us."

"I wouldn't be surprised," I grumbled. I studied him, "How're you doing?"

He shook his head, "I don't see how they can all be so calm. They're trapped here, how are they not terrified?"

"I'm sure they're all scared, Greenie. Maybe they've just learnt to deal with it."

He groaned, "God, don't you call me that too."

"Greenie?" He nodded.  _I was really close to his face_. "I like it," I smiled, "It's cute."  _Was I going too far?_

"It's stupid," he whispered, taking my hand in his once again.

"Well, what would you like me to call you then?" I couldn't seem to unlock my eyes with his.

"Thomas," he whispered. A wide grin started to spread across his face. "Thomas – my name is Thomas! Call me Thomas!"

 _Thomas. Tom is short for Thomas_.

I grinned back at him, "Thomas!"

"Thomas!" he shouted.

"Alby," I called, searching for him in the huddle of boys next to us. "Alby, he's got his name, he remembered!"

Alby looked at him, eyebrows raised. Thomas shouted, "My name is Thomas!" Everyone was watching us now.

Alby raised his jar in the air, "Thomas!"

"Thomas!" everyone responded, raising their jars too. I laughed –  _they really did have a nice little family here_.

"What do you say then,  _Thomas_?" Gally spat out his name. Thomas half jumped away from me, letting go of my hand and standing up straighter.  _Of course he'd ruin the moment_. "Wanna see what you're made of?"

This made me nervous – he was practically jumping at the chance to fight him. Thomas looked just as anxious as I did. The boys around us began to chant his name, encouraging him to step up and tackle Gally.

Thomas looked at me, clearly nervous, before nodding at Gally and murmuring an "Alright."

The two of them walked to the centre of the circle and I moved to the front of the audience, holding my jar to my chest.

Newt was soon stood next to me, "That's the most stupid decision he's made all day."

I scowled, "I don't think he had much of a choice."

"The rules are simple," Gally announced. "I try to push you out of the circle and you try to last more than five seconds." His friends were laughing and he smirked, watching Thomas' reaction.

"Take it easy, Gally," Alby warned, eyebrows raised. I doubted we'd be that lucky.

Without warning, Gally surged forward, shoving Thomas hard. He stumbled, falling towards some boys near me but stopping himself before he met the edge of the circle.

"Come one, Shank, we're not done yet," he laughed, cracking his neck.

Thomas scowled.  _That was even worse than Greenie_. He turned around but Gally instantly ploughed into him, shoving him onto the ground roughly. He wasn't aiming to get him out of the circle anymore – he was trying to hurt him. I saw this realisation come over Thomas' face as he stood again, shoving Gally as hard as he could.

"Not bad for a  _Shank_ , huh?" He raised his eyebrows.

Gally stumbled, falling backwards, but he got up as soon as he hit the ground. He pushed Thomas once again and he hit the ground. As Thomas went to get up again, Gally pushed him back down. This happened a few more times before Alby tried to intervene.

"Gally, that's enough-" He was interrupted by a sudden roar. It was enough to deafen someone, like some kind of animalistic screech. Even after it stopped, there was still a ringing in the air.

"What the hell was that?" Thomas whispered, before I could even bring myself to speak.

"That, my friend, was a griever," Gally explained.

Newt must have seen my apprehension because he rubbed my arm, "Don't worry, Al, you're safe with us. The grievers only come out at night, after the doors have closed."

"Right," Gally shouted, eyes focusing on me, "I think it's Girlie's turn."

"No way," Newt shook his head. "You're not fighting Alice."

"No one touches the girl," Alby warned, "Let's lay down that rule now."

"I can take it," I insisted, scowling. "I'm not a baby, stop treating me like one."

"Alice," Newt's tone had a hint of warning, "You're not-"

"Why? Because im a girl?" I raised my eyebrows, "Bit sexist, don't you think?"

Gally smirked, "I'm sure Girlie can handle a little fun."

"Alice," Alby warned me once more, but I glared at him. I shoved my jar into Newt's chest, "Hold that." He sighed, taking it from me.

I walked into the centre of the circle, glaring at Gally. He smirked, "You know the rules, Girlie?"

I squinted, "What's the point when you're not gonna stick to them."

He gasped, hand holding his chest in mock offence, "Ouch, Alice, why don't you have any faith in me?" He nodded, holding his arms up, "Come on, have a free shot – a head start."

I scowled, running forward and shoving him. He stumbled backwards slightly, but my tiny muscles didn't do much to faze him when he was so prepared. He laughed at weak attempt looking around his friends, mocking me. I huffed, swinging a leg at his ankles. He tripped, falling sideways but catching himself.  _He wasn't expecting that_. He almost growled, surging forward, but I was prepared. I caught his arms, holding his wrists in my grip and pushing back as he tried to knock me over. We pushed against each other, struggling, but when he shoved me suddenly I hit the ground. I skidded on the floor, biting my lip on the impact. I wiped the metallic taste from my mouth with my sleeve.

"Gally, that's enough!" I heard Alby shout, but I wasn't finished.

I stood, huffing. I walked towards him and, without even thinking, I punched him. In the face.  _Hard_.

He fell back, blood falling from his nose to the grass. I gasped slightly, not expecting that from myself, but continuing to glare at him.  _He deserved it_.

Silence fell upon the glade as everyone watched Gally hold his face, trying to gain back his cocky posture.

"Right, everyone, I think it's time for bed," Alby announced.

Everyone started to move towards the homestead but Gally stalked straight over to me. Hand fell heavy on my shoulder and I swallowed thickly. His voice was low, barely audible, "Watch your back, Girlie."

Thomas and I sat opposite each other on the floor between our hammocks later, just after everyone had gone to bed.

He shook his head, smiling, "I can't believe you punched Gally."

I shrugged, "He pissed me off – what else was I supposed to do?"

He chuckled quietly, shaking his head. He raised his hand to my face and I could feel my cheeks heating up. He held the underside of my chin, running the pad of his thumb over my now swollen lip, "That looks like it hurts."

I looked down at my crossed legs, nervous under his gaze, "I'll live." I managed to bring my eyes up and found he was still watching me. I cautiously lifted up my hand, testing the waters, and pulled his down so that I could hold it. I began fiddling with his fingers in my lap. He didn't try to stop me. After a moment, I whispered, "I'm tired."

He smiled, stroking his thumb over the back of my hand, "We should go to bed." And so we did.


	7. [04] connections

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "We have studied subject A6's reactions to fear and the survival requirements in his surroundings and we are very impressed. But, now, we must study his emotional reactions, along with that of our other subjects."  
> ↬  
> Alice went into the maze twice. Once with her brother, once with her boyfriend. It was cruel, sure, but it confirmed WCKD's suspicions - for a number of boys in Group A, Alice was their weakness.  
> ↬  
> Trial 1: In Progress.  
> ↬   
> i don't own the maze runner, in case that wasn't obvious

_Hands. Warmth._

_"Where are you going?"_

_"We're late-"_

_"Just five more minutes, please."_

_-_

_Eyes. Cold._

_"You seem to have taken a particular interest in subject A2. I do hope this won't interfere with our trials."_

_-_

_Blue. Everywhere._

_"I can't-"_

_"You can, Al. We have to. You know we have to."_

_-_

_Lies. It's all lies._

 

_"WICKED is good."_

_-_

A hand on my forehead awoke me. When I opened my eyes, Thomas' were looking back at me, "Are you okay?" I nodded, despite my erratic breathing, and tried to sit up. He didn't move, so I lay back again. "Alice, you're shaking."

I shook my head, "I'm fine."

He stood up from where he leant over my hammock, standing back and allowing me to sit up. I shifted round to rest my feet on the ground.

I squinted at him, "Why're you up so early? The sun isn't even up."

He hesitated but shook his head, "Couldn't sleep." I screwed my eyes shut, head still pounding. He put a hand on my knee, crouching down in front of me, "Al, are you-"

"I'm fine," I assured, taking his hand in mine. "I promise."

He smiled, running his thumb over my knuckles. I squeezed his hand once more.  _What am I doing? I've not even known this boy a full day._

"Alice? Thomas?" I turned around, seeing Alby walking towards us. He smiled, "I was just about to wake you both. Follow me."

He took us to the wall that he had shown us the day before, with the name of every glader to come up in the box engraved into the stone. The wall with my name already on it – crossed out.

From where we stood against the wall, we looked back on the rest of the glade. The sun was just beginning to rise, leaving the sky with a golden hue. It was beautiful.

"It's peaceful, isn't it," Alby smiled and I nodded. The glade was completely silent at this hour, a needed break from the commotion of yesterday. He turned to look at the both of us, acquiring a more serious tone, "I know it's hard to believe, but it wasn't always like this. After Alice disappeared, when more boys turned up, there were some dark days. We lost a lot of boys to fear, to panic." It made me queasy to think that I had caused so many names on that wall to be crossed out; I had caused so many deaths. But Alby must have noticed my uneasiness, "Not your fault, I promise. That was before we had any kind of authority. We've come far since then – established order, made peace."

"Why are you telling us this?" Thomas asked.

Alby shook his head, "You two aren't like the others. Thomas, you're curious. I've never seen someone so eager to work all of this out. And Alice, you were here once before and they sent you up again. Now, I don't know the reason for that, but there is one. You're special – we need you." I smiled and I saw Thomas smile at me too. Alby looked between the two of us, "You two definitely have a connection. We can all see it. Hell, those boys haven't seen a girl in years, but no one even tried to make a move on you because of what you clearly have with Thomas." He smiled at us once again, "I'm not sure what it is, I'm guessing you probably knew each other before all of this. You guys obviously had something special and it's still there."

I was suddenly aware of how close Thomas and I were standing, and couldn't stop the red flush covering my face as I looked away. I couldn't even see what Thomas' reaction was.

Alby chuckled, "But, that's not what I brought you here for." He pulled a knife from the waistband of his trousers and I gasped, stepping back instantly, and I felt Thomas grab my arm. "Hey," Alby held up his hands, "I'm not gonna hurt you. We need to trust each other, remember?" I nodded, now realising what the weapon was for. "You guys are one of us, now. You need to know what that means."

He handed the knife to Thomas who took it gently, gripping tighter once it was in his hands. He raised it to the stone wall, pointing its tip in the space underneath Chucks' name and beginning to carve out his own. When he had finished, he passed it to me and I froze. I looked to where my name was already written, crossed out with one straight line.

I felt Alby's hand on my shoulder, "This is a new start, Alice - your new life. Write your new name."

And so I smiled and began to write.

It didn't come out very clear – it was very faint – but it was readable, at least. When I handed the knife back to Alby, I heard a laugh break through the silence.

"We'll have to get you some more muscle, Ally." Newt hobbled over to us, pointing to the wall as he continued to laugh, "We helped you do it the first time, but that was because you were too short to reach where we'd put Alby's." He looked me up and down, and I became more aware of how the three boys towered over me. "Actually, you're still tiny."

I scowled at him and Thomas laughed, "Aw, don't worry, Al, maybe you'll catch up. You've got a while to go, though." I hit him.

"Right, come on, you two," Alby chuckled, "Let's get you some breakfast. You've got a big day ahead."

Alby introduced us to Frypan – a dark-skinned, dark-haired, tall boy – who he told us was the cook. He fried some bread for us and we seated ourselves at one of the wooden tables in his little hut, Thomas and I sitting opposite Alby and Newt.

Alby let us eat a little before he spoke, "Today, we'll start trying you guys out with some jobs. Start one today, see how that turns out. If it works, you can stay there. If not, you can try something else tomorrow. How does that sound?" The two of us nodded, mouths full of what I realised to be the first thing we ever remembered eating. "Alice," he looked across the table, "You can spend the day with Clint and Jeff in the med-jack hut."

 _Of course_ , I thought,  _make the girl a nurse_. But I said nothing, nodding.

He then shifted so he was looking across to Thomas, "Thomas, you'll be with Newt and the track-hoes."

"Actually," Thomas started, stopping to swallow his food, "I wanted to have a look with the run-"

"You'll be with Newt," Alby shut him down, glaring.

"Can't I just go once?" he pushed.

"Thomas, will you stop, please?" I snapped. The tree of them looked at me, wide-eyed. I picked up my piece of bread.

"Sorry, Al," Thomas mumbled. I didn't say anything.

When I walked into the med-jack hut, two boys (who I remembered to be Clint and Jeff) were sat waiting for me.

"We thought you weren't coming, for a moment there, Alice," the dark-skinned one smiled. He had short hair and a cheeky grin.

"Sorry," I tried to return the smile, "Alby was going over everything."

"Don't worry, sweetheart, it's all good," assured the other one. He was paler and had relatively long, scruffy brown hair. He looked slightly older than the other boy and I, maybe by a year or two. He was also taller than the other boy, although the both of them were similarly skinny. He gave me a warm smile, "I'm Clint, and this is Jeff." Jeff waved at me.

I looked around the hut. It was quite cosy, actually. It was small, but we could move around easily. There was a bed on one wall and on the opposite wall stood a desk and chair, with boxes of bandages, tissues and only God knows what else piled up next to it.

"First thing's first," Jeff stood from his chair, walking to stand next to Clint in front of me. He was smirking slightly, "How are you with blood?"

"Um," I shrugged, "Basic cuts and stuff should be fine. I must warn you though; a lot of blood might make me queasy."

Clint chuckled, nodding, "Well, you do sound a lot like Newt. You're definitely his sister." I blushed. "Don't worry; we won't put you with major injuries for a while. For now, you can work with minor cuts and then any headaches and other basic injuries. How does that sound?"

I nodded – that sounded simple enough.

Jeff nudged me, his cheeky grin turning into a sincere smile for just a moment, "We'll be right here with you, don't worry. If you need a hand, we can help."

I didn't treat many people that morning, mainly because not many people came in, but the few boys that did come in were given to me. We had a couple of minor cuts that Clint and Jeff helped me clean and bandage up, and one bumped head which was prescribed some frozen veg from Frypan and an early night. Around midday, it was looking pretty empty, and so I sat cross-legged at one end of the bed to rest my legs. Clint perched on the other end of the bed after Jeff beat him in running for the chair.

"So, Alice, how's your boyfriend?" Jeff was raising his eyebrows over and over like they were a pair of manic kangaroos.

"Boyfriend? Who-" and then I stopped, scowling as I realised who he meant. "He isn't my boyfriend."

"Oh, come on," he laughed, "This is the first time I've seen you two apart since you got here!" I scowled again but he carried on. "You two fancy each other, it's so obvious!"

"We've known each other a day!" I protested.

"Aw, Alice and Thomas have known each other but a day and they're already in love!"

"He's not my boyfriend," I grumbled.

Clint smiled, patting my knee, "Give it time."

"Speak of the devil," Jeff grinned, looking through the door. I leant forward, twisting round to look through the gap, and I saw Thomas walking towards the med-jack hut.

Clint smiled, raising his eyebrows, "Lover Boy really can't stay away from you." He stood, gesturing out of the door, "Come on, Jeff, let's grab some lunch." Jeff winked at me before they left.

Thomas came in shortly afterwards, carrying two mugs, "Newt let me have a break and I thought you could use some company." He nodded towards the mugs, "Frypan said to bring you some tea."

I smiled and thanked him as I took one of the mugs with both hands, twisting round on my bottom to face him once he sat down with me on the bed. I took a sip of the tea, humming contently. It was sweet – honey, maybe? I felt a lot warmer.

I smiled up at Thomas over my mug, "How's your first day at work going?"

He shrugged, "It's not so bad. It's so hot though, I'm probably sweating really badly."

I scrunched up my nose, "Yeah, you do smell a bit."

"Hey!" he poked my stomach and I giggled, kicking my legs out to stop him. Yes, I actually giggled.  _Bloody hell, Alice, pull yourself together._

"I'm kidding," I assured, "You're not too bad."

"Not too bad?" he gaped and I laughed. "Wow, Alice, aren't you a romantic."

I froze.  _Was I supposed to be romantic? Did he want me to be?_

He coughed slightly, "Um, how have things been over here?"

"Uh, yeah, okay," I nodded, "Not many people have been in. Chuck cut his finger, although Clint said he manages to do that a lot." We both chuckled. "He says he's working on something, won't tell me what though."

He looked at me for a moment, "You look tired."

I nodded, "I am." I looked down at my dirty clothes, realising how sweaty I'd gotten in the stuffy room, "I could do with a shower too, really."

He sniffed, screwing up his face but smirking, "Okay, yeah, it's not me who stinks, it's you."

I gaped, swatting him, "You cheeky bastard." I laughed, shaking my head, "You've such a way with words, Thomas; you do make a girl feel special."

I saw him blush and I smirked.  _Payback_.

He seemed to regain his posture, standing up and taking the mug from my hands, "How about we ask your brother about showers?" I nodded, getting up too. He looked around before placing the mugs the desk, "I'm sure Clint and Jeff won't mind."

I chuckled and he ushered me out quickly, before the boys got back and saw our dirty cups. He took my hand, leading me over to the garden, and I couldn't help the heat that filled my face.  _Wow, was I really falling for this boy so soon?_

"Newt," I called as we got closer to him. He looked up, digging his spade into the ground and leaning on it when he realised I was planning on chatting. "I could kind of do with a clean-up, how do I go about having a shower?"

He frowned slightly, looking about as if trying to find a solution, "Um, well, we do have some showers, but all the boys use them together. Privacy's never really been a problem before..." He trailed off at the end, looking between Thomas and me. "Okay," he nodded, "What if Tommy here checks no one's already in there and he can stand outside the door while you shower, so no one goes in?"

_Tommy – where had I heard that before?_

Thomas' cheeks were a funny shade of pink as he nodded, "Uh, yeah, sure."

Newt leant closer to him, lowering his voice as he pointed in his face, "No funny business, Shank."

Thomas nodded wide-eyed and I scowled. These boys were gonna be hard work.

One of the huts in the glade had four taps lined along the top of one wall. There were no partitions between them, and I realised that the boys really didn't have any issues with privacy. But, then again, I suppose they didn't really need it.

Thomas went in first and came out assuring me the hut was empty, saying that there was a pile of towels and some soap in the corner. Sure enough, there was, and after checking he was the only person outside – and that his back was turned – I turned one shower on.

Steam began to fill the hut and I moved away from the water, beginning to undress. I had been sweating, meaning I had to practically peel my shirt off. But, when I took off my trousers and saw my legs, I screamed.

"Alice?!" I heard Thomas run in, but I couldn't tear my eyes away from my leg. "Uh," I heard him stutter, most likely feeling awkward at the sight of me sat naked on the floor, but he spoke up again when he saw me shaking. "Alice? Alice, what's wrong?"

I felt him crouch down next to me, a towel going around my shoulders. I heard him gasp when he saw what I was looking at. On my thigh were several cuts,  _slices_  even. They were deep, clearly, and they were starting to close up, but the skin around them was still red and agitated. The most frightening aspect, though, was that they seemed to form letters.

 _WCKD_.


	8. [05] changing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "We have studied subject A6's reactions to fear and the survival requirements in his surroundings and we are very impressed. But, now, we must study his emotional reactions, along with that of our other subjects."  
> ↬  
> Alice went into the maze twice. Once with her brother, once with her boyfriend. It was cruel, sure, but it confirmed WCKD's suspicions - for a number of boys in Group A, Alice was their weakness.  
> ↬  
> Trial 1: In Progress.  
> ↬   
> i don't own the maze runner, in case that wasn't obvious

"Al?" Newt held up the cup of Frypan's tea.

"I don't want any," I mumbled. He frowned, rubbing my leg. I felt Thomas squeeze my shoulder.

"Alice," Clint started, crouching down in front of the bed, "I need to have another look at your leg. Can you move the towel a bit for me?"

I sat up, moving out from under Thomas' arm and pulling my feet out of Newt's lap to dangle them over the edge of the bed. I managed to manoeuvre the towel so that Clint could see my leg, but I was still covered. He ran his fingers over the gashes, tracing the letters.

_WCKD. Isn't that the code on the wall of the box?_

"It was them, wasn't it?" Newt asked. "The people that put us in here, that's their symbol. They did that to her."

Clint shook his head, "I don't think so, looking at the angle of it. Look, it's facing her." He looked at me, "Alice, I'm pretty sure you did this."

I could've been sick. "What?" I shook my head, "No, I couldn't have – I don't even remember-"

"It doesn't look that recent." He shook his head, "No, it looks a couple days old. My guess is you did it before you were sent up. That's why you don't remember."

I sniffed, shaking my head, "I don't- I don't get it. Why would I...  _mutilate_  myself?"

"Tell you what, Alice," Jeff piped up, "Whatever the reason, I've never seen anything quite like this. This is some next level clunk."

"Let's not freak the girl out, boys." Alby walked over from his spot by the door, crouching down where Clint had been before. "Alice, I've got to ask you, do you have any idea what this means?"

I shook my head rapidly, "Alby, I swear, I have no idea where that came from. I didn't even know it was there until today-"

"Alright, Al," Newt soothed at my blubbering, pulling me into him. I rested my head on his shoulder, sniffing some more.  _Why am I so weak?_ "It's alright, we believe you."

"I don't," Gally scowled, walking into the medjack hut.

"Gally," Alby warned, "Not now."

"Not now? The girl's  _branded_  by the people who sent us up here; does that not seem off to you?

"Hey," Thomas stood up, "Leave her alone, alright, she-"

"And you, Greenie. You came up with her; don't think I'm not on to you, too."

"Excuse me?"

"Thomas, stop," I urged.

"I don't know why you both haven't been banished already-"

"GALLY!" Alby roared. Everyone went quiet. "Get out, go back to work."

Gally scowled before walking over to me, leaning over me while I remained sat on the bed, "I don't know what your deal is, Girlie, but you better watch your shucking back."

I raised my eyebrows, "Yes, sir."

When I was finally able to shower, I couldn't take my eyes off the gashes on my thigh. What was WCKD? And why had I branded myself with its name? Nothing had made sense since I had come up in the box, and it was really started to get to me.

I re-dressed and ran my fingers through my wet hair as best I could, to try and make myself look at least moderately presentable. Alby had told me to take the rest of the day off and so I found myself quite bored. While everyone else was working, there was little to do in the Glade. I decided I would pay Newt and Thomas a visit, even if I did wind up just watching them work.

I was slowly getting more annoyed with the size of the Glade. It would take me several minutes just to walk from the showers to the track-hoes, which doesn't sound too bad but it was bloody torturous in the heat. Newt had said the weather was always like that – it hadn't ever rained. How did they even cope?

The usual peaceful atmosphere was disrupted by distressed screams; ones that I recognised.

"Thomas," I whispered, starting up into a run in the direction of his shouts.

He came running out of the woods, stumbling as someone followed behind him. They kept trying to grab hold of him. I noticed it was Ben.  _What the hell was he doing_?

"Thomas!" I screamed, again running towards him, but I was still quite far away.

Ben caught up to him, wrestling him to the ground and pinning him down with his hands around his neck. "You did this!" he was screaming, "It was you! I saw you!" Thomas was flailing around beneath him. "I'll kill you!"

"Thomas!" I screamed again, now coming towards the two of them.

Ben turned around. "You," he seethed, getting up, "It was you, too! I saw you both!"

He lunged at me, grabbing me by the collar of my shirt. I cried out, stumbling backwards into the crowd of boys that had now formed around us. Ben was pulled off me and pushed to the ground by Alby, Newt and Gally. I rushed over to Thomas as he started to get himself up.

"Thomas, your face!" I ran my fingers over the cuts above his eyebrow. His hands landed on my shoulders, running down to rest on my back as I turned away from him again.

"What the hell happened?" Minho shouted, looking to Thomas and me.

"He just attacked me!" Thomas exclaimed. "Then he went for Alice."

"No, no, please," Ben was murmuring, looking up at Alby.

Alby looked to Gally, "Alright, lift his shirt."

Ben tried to wriggle out of the boys' grip as Gally lifted up his shirt. Below his rib was a small wound but with large purple veins spreading out around it, covering most of his stomach. It was then I realised how pale he looked and how his lips were almost grey. He looked ill. I covered my mouth with my hand, Thomas pulling me close to him.

"He's been stung," Gally announced.

"What, by a Griever?" I asked. Newt nodded. "I thought you said they only come out at night!"

"If they're coming out in the day then doesn't that mean they can get through the doors?" Thomas pointed out.

"Right, enough," Alby shouted. He stood, "Put him in the pit."

Minho helped Gally and Newt to lift Ben off the ground, dragging him away from the rest of us.

Alby turned to Thomas and me, "You two: with me."

He took us to the homestead, sitting down with us. I took Thomas' hand in mine.

"What's happening to him?" he asked.

Alby sighed, "It's called the changing. It's what happens when someone gets stung. Listen," he moved slightly closer to us, "We haven't been able to get a clear word out of Ben since it happened. The guy's not making any sense and he's only gonna get worse; the infection's spreading. He's dangerous."

I knew the rules: never harm another Glader. Ben had quite clearly tried to harm us. He'd broken the rules. "What's going to happen to him?" I whispered.

Alby ignored my question, "What did he say to you guys?"

"Um," Thomas started, "He said he saw me and that this was all my fault."

"He said the same to me," I added.

Thomas shook his head, "How could this be our fault?"

Alby furrowed his brow, thinking for a moment. He stood, clapping Thomas on the shoulder, "You two should get some rest."

"Alby," I stopped him. "What's going to happen to Ben?"

"He's dangerous, Alice," he reiterated, "He's a danger to the other Gladers."

I stared at him, trying to read him, "Alby, what're you going to do to him."

"Don't worry about it," he assured, moving away. "He won't be able to hurt you guys again."

It was getting late. The doors would be closing soon.  _Wait, no-_

"Alby, no," I gasped, standing, "No, you can't-"

"Alice, don't get involved," he warned me. "You know the rules."

"I know, but you can't do this-"

Thomas stood, "What-"

"Alice," Alby's tone was rising, "He can't be here anymore."

"No!" I cried out, running past him. I knew both of them were following me.

Every other Glader had formed a barricade around the doors, leaving Ben on the floor in front of them. Newt, Gally and Minho were at the front, fire torches in their hands.

"Stop!" I screeched, coming towards the group. Everyone remained focused on Ben.

"Alice," Newt warned, "Go back to the homestead."

"Please," I begged, "Please, don't do this. It's not fair." No one budged. I could hear Ben whimpering. "He's going to  _die_  out there, you can't do this."

"He's dangerous, Alice-"

"And what if it was me? I went in there and I never came out." I knew it was cruel to do this to him, but I was desperate. "You wouldn't send me in there again, so how can you send-"

Newt screwed his eyes shut, screaming, "Alice, for the love of God, go back to the shucking homestead!"

I could feel tears in my eyes, "Newt, please-"

He let out an angered sigh, "Thomas!"

I felt Tom wrap his arms around me, "Alice, come on."

"No," I whimpered, clutching his shirt. The doors began to close.

"Now!" Alby shouted. The boys all pointed their torches towards Ben, pushing him towards the closing doors.

I turned to face Thomas, crying into his chest. He covered my ears with his hands, attempting to shield me from the loud grinding of the doors. I could still hear Ben screaming, begging for help, until it all stopped. I slowly lifted my head from Thomas' chest. He looked horrified. I turned around to see the maze doors were closed.

Alby addressed the group, "He belongs to the maze now."

As the boys began to disperse, Newt ran over to me, "Alice-"

"You've killed him!" I sobbed, "You've all practically killed him!"

"I'm sorry," Newt whispered, pulling me into him. "We had to, Al. We had no choice."

Some of the other boys were staring at me.  _Why did I just keep crying? Why was I so weak?_

"Do you think he might make it?" Thomas asked Chuck as we sat with him back at the homestead.

"Ben?" Thomas nodded. "No. No one survives a night in the maze." Chuck sighed, "We just gotta forget about him."

They crossed out Ben's name on the wall that night. I could hear him screaming in my dreams.


	9. [06] rain

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "We have studied subject A6's reactions to fear and the survival requirements in his surroundings and we are very impressed. But, now, we must study his emotional reactions, along with that of our other subjects."  
> ↬  
> Alice went into the maze twice. Once with her brother, once with her boyfriend. It was cruel, sure, but it confirmed WCKD's suspicions - for a number of boys in Group A, Alice was their weakness.  
> ↬  
> Trial 1: In Progress.  
> ↬   
> i don't own the maze runner, in case that wasn't obvious

_"Thomas, I don't trust them anymore. This isn't right-"_

_"Baby, what's going on, what's happened?"_

_-_

_"I don't want to forget. I can't forget."_

_"Alice, where is all this coming from?"_

_-_

_"Oh my God, Alice, what have you done? What have you done to yourself-"_

_"I won't forget. I **won't**."_

_-_

I woke up frantic again. Whatever I kept dreaming about at night, whatever I had  _remembered_ , I had always lost it by the time I woke up. I heard groaning beside me and I saw Thomas begin to stir. I watched as he began to fidget, still asleep. He continued to groan, starting to whimper whilst still tossing around.

I leant over him, shaking him gently. "Tom," I whispered, repeating it a couple of times. He jerked awake, looking around before squinting up at me, "Sorry," I stammered, "I-I think you had a nightmare."

"Um, yeah," he nodded, sitting up. "I'm pretty sure you've been getting them too." He saw my confused look. "You keep talking in your sleep."

I scoffed, "I hope I've been entertaining you."

He shook his head, chuckling, "I can never make out what it is."

"I keep having these strange dreams," I explained, "But when I wake up I can't remember any of it."

"Me too," he nodded. "I don't think they're exactly  _dreams_  though. They're more-"

"Memories," I interjected, agreeing with him. He nodded.

The familiar sound of the maze doors opening boomed around the glade, and Thomas and I looked over to where they were moving. We could see the runners ready to go (minus Ben, of course).

Thomas squinted, "Why is Alby going with Minho?"

I looked carefully and, sure enough, Alby and Minho were entering the maze together. Newt was stood by the doors, waving them off.

Newt told us later that Alby had gone with Minho to retrace Ben's footsteps. I found it quite stupid that Alby was going to take the exact path that Ben did right before getting stung, but my brother was convinced that Alby knew what he was doing. I guess he probably knew better than any of us. He was the first one here, after all.

"I think it's starting to rain," I observed, shovelling some more of Frypan's pasta into my mouth.

Newt chuckled, "Not a chance – it's never rained here."

But, sure enough, within ten minutes we were all huddled under the canopies and watching the downpour. I stood between Newt and Thomas, shivering.

"What happens if they don't make it?" Thomas asked, voicing my own concerns.

Newt shook his head, rubbing my arm in an attempt to warm me up, "They'll make it."

"But what if they don't-"

"They'll make it," he reiterated, shutting Thomas down.

Gally was pacing, stropping as usual, "Newt, it's raining – it's never rained before."

"Yeah, I've noticed that Gally, I'm not shucking stupid."

Gally didn't seem too happy with that, "Listen, just because Alby left you in charge-"

I groaned, "Boys, for goodness sake-"

"Pipe down, Girlie," Gally bit back. I froze.

Newt raised his eyebrows, taking a step closer to him, "I suggest you watch your tongue." Gally scowled, sitting back in his corner.

Thomas had moved to the far side of the canopy, leaning against one of the posts. He was looking out into the Glade, clearly deep in thought.

I walked over, looking out with him, "What's on your mind?"

He squinted at the gap in the maze doors, "I wanna know what's out there."

"As in, just being nosey?"

"No, as in, I want to know what we're up against. I just want to go out there, try and figure a way out- just see if there even is a way out." He turned to face me. "Don't you?"

I stayed silent for a moment before shaking my head, "Last time I went in there, I disappeared and didn't come back. Why would I want to go back in there?"

Neither of us spoke again for a while. The rain seemed to be quietening down.

"Do you honestly not remember being here the first time?" he asked me shortly after.

I shook my head, "Absolutely nothing."

I looked back out at the Glade. The rain had stopped now and the boys were beginning to go back out. There were only a few of us left under the canopy.

I looked at Thomas, smirking, "I have an idea." He raised an eyebrow and I laughed, pulling him by the hand, "Come on!"

He chuckled, following me. The rain may have stopped, but the Glade was still soaked. I pulled Thomas out of the canopy, over to where my brother was stood by a rather large puddle. I let go of Thomas' hand, running to jump in the puddle and splashing muddy water all over Newt.

He stood, gaping at me in disbelief, "Alice, what the-"

"You're being boring," I dragged out, "Come on, have a laugh!"

He grinned, kicking the water in front of him in Thomas' direction. Tom laughed, "Watch out, Ally."

The two of them surged forward, kicking water at me. I squealed, attempting to run away, but my short arse couldn't run as fast as them and they soon caught up. A few other boys joined in, chasing after each other and kicking water, and soon the majority of the gladers were giddy and sodden.

Thomas had followed me towards the canopy, aiming splashes in my direction.

"Time out!" I screeched, panting as I slowed down. "Time out, I'm knackered."

Thomas chuckled, slowing down too. The rest of the gladers were still happily playing. I leant against the post, Thomas stood towering over me. "I like your idea," he told me, "It was a good one."

I smiled, "I'm full of good ideas."

He nodded, "You sure are."

He was so incredibly close to me; I could feel his breath on my face. He lifted my chin with his finger, pulling me even closer to him.

"Tom," I whispered.

"Shh," he told me. "Just... Don't say anything."

He pulled my chin up until our lips met, brushing softly. He was gentle, almost as if he was afraid of breaking me. But he was sweet – so, so sweet.

He pulled away, running his thumb over my lip. I smiled up at him, "Thank you."

He smiled back, furrowing his brow, "What for?"

I shrugged, "Just... thank you." He smiled again, kissing me on the forehead.

"Guys," we turned around to see Chuck running over, "I, um, I didn't mean to interrupt but, uh... the doors are supposed to close any minute."

I looked over to the doors, "Minho and Alby aren't back yet."

Every single glader was waiting at the doors shortly afterwards. There was still no sign of either of the boys.

Thomas was getting agitated, "Come on, guys, can't we send someone after them?"

"That's against the rules," Gally grunted. "Either they make it back or they don't."

I groaned, "God, I love how cheerful you are."

"Shut it, Girlie."

"Then quit being an arse."

"Alice," Newt warned. I just huffed. He sighed, turning back to Thomas, "We can't risk losing anyone else."

The usual gust of wind came through the doors and I lifted up a hand to shield my eyes.  _Where were the guys?_

The doors rumbled as they began to close and Chuck gasped, "Oh no."

"There!" Thomas pointed into the maze, where we could just make out Minho and Alby rounding the corner.

"Guys, something's wrong," I pointed out. Alby was draped over Minho and he was carrying him. "Alby's injured."

"Come on, Minho, you can do it!" Chuck called. We all joined in, shouting words of encouragement through the gap.

Minho dropped Alby on the floor, stumbling. I took Thomas' hand in mine as the realisation hit me: they weren't going to get back in time.

"They're not gonna make it," Newt pointed out.

"Minho, you're gotta leave him!" Gally shouted.

I looked to Thomas in panic and he looked down at me with a look I couldn't read. He kissed me on the forehead.

"Tommy," I murmured, unsure.

"I love you," he whispered.  _He what?_

And with that he let go of my hand and ran straight into the maze.

"Thomas!" I screeched, lurching forward. Newt grabbed me, pulling me back again. I watched as the doors clanged shut, trapping Tom on the other side.

I dragged away from my brother, pounding my fists against the stone wall, sobbing. Newt grabbed hold of my hands, stopping me from hurting myself anymore. "Why," I sobbed, "Why would he-"

"I don't know, Al," Newt shook his head, pulling me into his chest, "I don't have a bloody clue."


	10. [07] runner

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "We have studied subject A6's reactions to fear and the survival requirements in his surroundings and we are very impressed. But, now, we must study his emotional reactions, along with that of our other subjects."  
> ↬  
> Alice went into the maze twice. Once with her brother, once with her boyfriend. It was cruel, sure, but it confirmed WCKD's suspicions - for a number of boys in Group A, Alice was their weakness.  
> ↬  
> Trial 1: In Progress.  
> ↬   
> i don't own the maze runner, in case that wasn't obvious

"You weren't at dinner," Newt called as he walked over to me, "I didn't know if you wanted me to bring you some."

I shook my head, "I'm not hungry."

When he got to me, he dropped some blankets beside me, "I'm guessing you won't be going to bed tonight, so I thought I could camp out with you."

"You don't have to-"

"I want to," he assured me, sliding down the wall to sit next to me.

I leant my head back against the doors that separated us from Thomas and the boys, "I just don't get it."

"What?"

"How he could be so  _bloody_  stupid, that's what." Newt chuckled, but I didn't find it very funny. "I'd just  _shucking_  told him – just told him how bloody  _terrified_  I am of the maze and then he just shucking  _runs in there_. Is he for  _real_?"

"Listen, we never said he was smart," he offered, trying to lighten the mood.

"He kissed me," I whispered after a moment.

"I know - I saw."

"He said he loved me."

"I know - I was there." He smiled at me, "And I'm pretty sure you feel the same."

I squinted, "Newt, I've known him for a few days-"

Newt shook his head, "No, you've known him longer than that. You two knew each other before all of this."

"How do you know that?"

"I know you," he pointed out, "I can tell he means so much to you. You wouldn't be like that if you had only just met him."

"And now I might not ever see him again," I whispered. I looked up at him, "Newt, I can't lose him."

"Hey, do you really have such little faith in him?" He put his arm around me and I rested my head on his shoulder.

"You said so yourself, Newt: no one survives a night in the maze."

I could feel him smile, "I'm not too sure anymore."

I must have fallen asleep on him at some point, because he shook me awake gently just before the doors were due to open. He helped me up off the ground, wrapping me in the blanket as the other boys began to crowd round. The doors began to open and I squinted at the wind, clutching my brother tighter. We all just stared at the empty doorway. There was no one to be seen.

Gally scoffed, "I told you guys, they're not coming back."

"No," Chuck urged, "Just- just wait a minute-"

I didn't even know what to say.

"No way," Zart breathed out.

I looked to where he was pointing and, to our disbelief; Thomas and Minho were hauling Alby around the corner. The gladers began cheering, some of them rushing forward to help them in. They helped get Alby down onto the ground in the middle of the group. I stood back.

"What happened out there?"

"How'd you guys make it out?"

I could see Chuck grinning, "You saw a Griever?"

"Yeah," Thomas panted, "Yeah, I saw one."

"Saw one?" Minho raised his eyebrows. "He killed it."

The boys began to disperse, some of them lifting Alby up to carry him to the medjack hut. I remained stood where I was.

I saw Thomas look over to me, walking towards me, "Alice-"

I felt tears pricking my eyes, "I thought you were dead." I shook my head, "I thought you were dead, Tom."

"I'm okay," he promised, pulling me into his chest. He shushed my cries, swaying slightly, "Hey, hey, it's alright, I'm alright."

I shook my head, "I thought I'd lost you-"

"Not a chance," he whispered.

"Thomas," I lifted my head from his chest, holding onto his shoulders, "I love you too."

He grinned, "I'm glad." He kissed me softly.

"Guys," we turned around at my brother's voice. "I know you've just been reunited, but Gally's kicked off. He wants a meeting right now."

I sighed. We were in for a rough ride.

In the meeting room, Thomas and I were told to sit against one wall, with the rest of the gladers sat in a small audience opposite us.

"Things are changing." Gally held court in front of the other boys, preaching. "There's no denying that. First, Ben gets stung in broad daylight, and then Alby." He pointed to Thomas, "And now one of our Greenies here has taken it upon himself to go into the maze."

"Yeah, and saved both Alby  _and_  Minho," I pointed out, "You should be bloody thanking him."

"Shut up, Girlie." He was pointing at me now. "You're on trial too." I just rolled my eyes. He addressed the gladers again, "Going into the maze without permission is a clear violation of our rules here.

"Yeah, but Alice is right," Frypan pointed out, "He  _did_  save the guys."

Gally raised a brow, "Did he? For three years we've coexisted with these things," he turned to Thomas, pointing at him again, "And now you're killed one of them." He turned back to the group, "Who knows what that could mean for us?"

Newt held his hands up, "Well, what do you suggest we do?"

Gally shrugged, "He has to be punished."

The other gladers started to shout out, some agreeing, some protesting. Newt stepped forward, "Gally, stop a minute-"

"Hang on," he interrupted, "I haven't even started on  _her_." Gally walked over to me, "Our little G _irlie_  has been here before. She was here when  _I_  came up." There was confused chatter among some of the boys who didn't already know the story. "Little old Alice went into the maze one morning and was never seen again, but now, three years later, she's somehow here – alive and well." He crouched down in front of me, face level with mine. "How did you get so lucky, Girlie?"

I leant in closer to his face, "Bite me."

I heard Thomas chuckle as Gally scowled, standing up and turning back round to the gladers, "I just find it a bit suspicious that Alice somehow got out of the maze unharmed, after no one else has managed to survive. And why was she sent back?" He threw his arms in the air, "Who are we to say she's not been sent here by them to turn against us?" Some boys murmured in agreement and Gally turned back to me, scowling, "I bet she's working with them."

The gladers started up again, mostly shouting in protest but others agreeing with Gally's claims. I didn't blame them, honestly: my circumstances were suspicious. But I was just as in the dark about it as everyone else.

"Minho," Newt called, silencing everyone, "You were there with him. What do you think?"

Minho sighed, "I think, in all the time we've been here, no one's ever killed a Griever before." He looked over to Thomas, "When I turned tail and ran, this dumb shank stood behind to help Alby." He turned back to the gladers, "Look, I don't know if he's brave or stupid..."  _Both_ , I thought. "But, whatever it is, we need more of it." He looked to Newt, shrugging, "I say we make him a runner."

The boys erupted into laughter, some shouting in protest.

"Minho, let's not jump the gun here, alright?"

"No!" Chuck shouted, "I say we should!" He grinned, beginning to chant Thomas' name. A few other boys joined in.

"Calm down, alright," Gally shouted, "If you want to throw the Newbie a parade, that's fine. Go ahead. But if there is one thing I know about the maze, it is that you do not-"

A loud rumbling cut him off, followed by an alarm. Everyone froze. Newt looked to Gally, then to me. We all began to move outside.

"I know that sound," Thomas pondered in front of me.

"It's the box," I panted, catching up and grabbing hold of him, "That's the box, it's coming back up."

Thomas squinted at me, "Why is the box coming back up when we've only just got here?"

We all ran over to seal in the middle of the Glade, which was opening up to reveal the box that Thomas and I had arrived in. Newt got there first, but he just stared.

"Newt, what is it?"

"What's in there?"

He just shook his head, "It's empty."

Thomas squinted, "What do you mean,  _it's empty_?"

He pulled me to the box by my hand and, sure enough, the box was completely empty. The boys began to mutter in confusion.

"Hang on," Newt jumped into the box. There was a piece of paper on the floor. He picked it up and read it. The boys began to ask what it said. He just looked straight at me.

"Newt," I urged, worried, "What does it say?"

He looked back down at the paper, reading the message out.

_"Alice was the last one ever."_


	11. [08] pattern

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "We have studied subject A6's reactions to fear and the survival requirements in his surroundings and we are very impressed. But, now, we must study his emotional reactions, along with that of our other subjects."  
> ↬  
> Alice went into the maze twice. Once with her brother, once with her boyfriend. It was cruel, sure, but it confirmed WCKD's suspicions - for a number of boys in Group A, Alice was their weakness.  
> ↬  
> Trial 1: In Progress.  
> ↬   
> i don't own the maze runner, in case that wasn't obvious

Everyone was looking at me.  _I was the last one ever_. The last what? The last girl? The last  _glader?_

Newt clambered out of the box, standing in front of me, "Alice..."

"I don't- I don't know what that means." I shook my head, "I swear I-I don't know-"

"Alright, okay, come on," Thomas shushed me, wrapping an arm around my shoulders.

Gally raised an eyebrow, "Still think I'm overreacting?"

Newt looked around the group before sighing, "Right, come on, everyone back to work."

Gally shook his head, scowling before he began to stomp off. The other guys began to move with him. Thomas was still stood with me, along with Newt and Minho.

Newt but his hands on my shoulders, leaning down to me slightly, "Alice, we're gonna go see Alby, okay? Now he's been stung, he might remember something that'll help us." I just nodded. He shared a look with Thomas that I couldn't read and the three of them led me to the medjack hut.

Alby was lying on the bed, struggling against something that I couldn't make out. Clint and Jeff were stood against the wall, watching. I felt sick.

"Jeff," Newt called out as we walked in, "What's going on?"

Jeff shook his head, "We're worried about that note, man. Y'know the box still hasn't gone down? If the box doesn't keep coming up, how long do you think we can last?"

"Okay, no one said that," Newt interjected. "Let's not jump to any conclusions; the box still has time to go back down. We'll just... we'll just wait."

I sat down against the wall slowly, not trusting my legs as my head continued to spin.

Winston leant over me, "Alice, you alright?"

I nodded, "Bit dizzy."

"You've had a shock, sweetheart. I'm also guessing you've not eaten." He passed me some bread from his plate and a cup of water, "Try and build yourself up again."

Thomas began to move towards the door.

"And where are you going?" Newt asked.

"Back into the maze," he shrugged, walking out.

 _Not again_. "Thomas," I strained, trying to get up.

"Alright, Al," Newt stopped me, pushing me back down. Minho clapped him on the shoulder, before running after Thomas.

I looked up at my brother, "Newt, why was that note about me? Why me? I-I don't know what's going on-"

"Hey, I know," he placed a hand on my shoulder, nodding, "I believe you, I do."

Thomas came in again, panting. Minho wasn't with him. "Where's-"

"Minho's waiting in the woods for me," he told me, crouching down in front of me. He rested a hand on my knee, "We're going back into the maze."

I stared at him wide-eyed, "Thomas, no-"

"It's not just us," he promised, cupping my cheek with his hand, "There are some other guys coming with us." I frowned at him. "We need to know what's out there, Al. If we have a look, we might actually be able to find a way out of here." I knew he had to go. He kissed me softly, "I promise you I'll stay safe." I nodded and he smiled, kissing my forehead, "I'll see you later."

They weren't gone for very long, a few hours maybe. We met them in the meeting room when they got back.

Thomas was holding up some kind of device with a number 7 lit up on one side. "It was inside a Griever," he told us.

He passed it to Newt, who turned it over. It said 'WCKD' on the bottom. "These are the same letters we get on our supplies," he pointed out.

"The same letters that were on my leg," I mumbled. Thomas took my hand in his.

"Yeah," he nodded, "Whoever put us here obviously made the Grievers and this is the first clue, the first anything, you've found in over three years, right, Minho?" Minho nodded. "Newt," Thomas urged, "We gotta go back out there. Who knows where this might lead us?"

Gally looked to Newt, "You see what he's trying to do, right? First he breaks our rules, and then he tries to convince us to abandon them totally-"

I scowled at him, "He's trying to help you, you prick."

He leant across to me, jerking his finger in my face, "These rules are the only thing that have ever held us together." He turned back to the rest of the group, "Why now are we questioning that?" He focused on Newt now, "If Alby was here, you know he'd agree with me. This Shank," he pointed to Thomas, "Needs to be punished."

Newt sighed, handing the device back to Minho, "You're right. Thomas broke the rules." He nodded, smirking slightly, "One night in the pit with no food."

Gally gaped at him, "Oh, come on, Newt! One night in the pit – do you think that's gonna stop him from going into the maze?"

"Oh, sod off, Gally!" I shouted at him. "Your voice is getting on my nerves."

"We can't just have non-runners running into the maze whenever they feel like it," Newt agreed.  _Where was he going with this?_ "So, let's make it official." He pointed at Thomas, "Starting from tomorrow, you're a runner."

 _In your face, Gally._ He shook his head, storming out.

Minho nudged Thomas and me, "Follow me."

He led the two of us through the woods to a little hut, hidden from the glade by the trees. Inside was a large table covered with a sheet. On the wall were drawings, which looked to be diagrams of the maze.

"This is the map room," Minho explained. He walked over to the table, pulling the sheet off it. Underneath was, what seemed to be, a model. There was a square in the middle, surrounded by multiple paths, spreading out across the whole table. "It's the maze," he pointed out, "All of it."

Thomas squinted at him, "What do you mean,  _all of it_? I thought you were still mapping it."

Minho sighed, "There's nothing left to map. I've run every inch of it myself. Every cycle, every pattern – if there was a way out, we would have found it by now."

All of these boys were convinced we were going to escape when, in reality, Minho knew it was impossible. I shook my head, "Why haven't you told them?"

"It was Alby's call," he explained. "People needed to believe we had a chance of getting out. But maybe now, thanks to you two, we have a real chance. Take a look at this," he started, gesturing towards the model. "About a year ago, we started exploring these outer sections, and we found these numbers printed on the walls: sections 1 through 8. See, the way it works, is every night, when the maze changes, it opens up a new section. So, today, Section 6 was open. Tomorrow it will be 4, then 8, then 3. The pattern always stays the same."

Thomas looked at the number on the device in his hand, "What's so special about 7?"

"I don't know," Minho sighed, "But, last night, when you killed that Griever, Section 7 was open."

"That must be where it came from," I pointed out.

Minho smiled, "You're good at this."

"Why are you telling us this?" Thomas asked.

"Because I need Alice's brains," he directed at me. He then turned to Thomas, "And I need you to come and take a closer look with me tomorrow."

"Alice!" I looked up to see Chuck running down the path.

"Hey, you're not supposed to be in here!"

"Sorry, Minho," he panted, "But we need Alice, quick."

I walked over to him, "What's wrong?"

"Something's wrong with Alby," he exclaimed, wide-eyed, "And I can't find Clint or Jeff anywhere!"

When we got to the medjack hut, Alby was thrashing around on the bed, screaming.

"What the hell happened?" I shouted, running in as Thomas, Chuck and Minho followed.

"I don't know!" Chuck protested, "He was sleeping and then he just jerked awake! I could hear him from the kitchen!"

"What the bloody hell is going on?" Newt questioned, running in.

I ran over to Alby's side, Thomas following, "Where are Clint and Jeff?"

"I don't-"

"Find them!" I urged, leaning over the bed. "Alby-"

His gaze snapped onto Thomas and I. "No!" he bellowed, launching himself at the both of us. He grabbed hold of Thomas's shirt, narrowly missing me. "You shouldn't be here!" he screamed in our faces. "I saw you! I saw both of you! You did this-" and then he froze.

Clint and Jeff had arrived, Clint injecting something into Alby's chest. He let go of Thomas, falling back onto the bed.

I looked up at Clint, "What the hell was that?"

He sighed, "Let's just say he'll be out for a while."

"Right," Newt announced, "From now on, someone stays here and watches him around the clock." He looked to Clint, Jeff and I, "Got it?" We nodded.

"Hey." Gally was stood in the door way. He nodded to Thomas, "It's sundown, Greenie, time to go." Thomas just nodded, squeezing my hand gently before following him out.

I got up from the bed, walking round to Newt, "He said the same thing Ben did: he said he saw Thomas and me. What does that mean-"

Newt sighed, "I don't know, Al. Right this second, I don't have a bloody clue, alright?" I frowned. "But whatever it is, we'll figure it out, alright?" I nodded, kissing him on the cheek.

When Frypan began to serve dinner, I felt bad that Thomas couldn't have any. I nudged Chuck after he'd finished eating, smiling, "Wanna make a secret delivery?"

"You," Thomas groaned through a mouth of bread, "Are amazing."

I grinned, "I know."

Chuck pointed to the bread through the gate, "You'll run better on a full stomach."

Thomas smiled, "Thanks, Chuck." Chuck pulled something out of his pocket, fiddling with it. Thomas gestured towards it, "Hey, what you got there?"

He held it up to show us. It was a wooden figure, which I guessed he had made himself.

"Wow, is that what you've been working on?"

He nodded at me, "It's for my parents."

Thomas' eyes widened, "You remember your parents?"

"No. I mean, I know I must have them and, wherever they are, I'm sure they miss me. But I can't miss them because I don't remember them."

That really hit me. I hadn't even thought about my parents. Were they looking for me? Did they even  _know_  I was gone?  _What if they had given me away?_

Chuck looked to Thomas again, "What do you think you're gonna find out there tomorrow?"

"I don't know," Thomas sighed, "But, if there's a way out, Chuck, me and Minho are gonna find it."

Chuck sighed, holding his figure up to Thomas, "Maybe, if you find a way out, you can give it to them for me."

"Hey, no," I pushed his hand back towards him. "When we get out of here, you're gonna give it to them yourself, okay?" He looked at me unsure.

"Chuck, we're all gonna get out of here," Thomas assured him, "I promise."

The boy smiled, "I'll let you get some sleep."

"Uh, yeah, I'll be there in a minute," I told him. I watched as he wandered off, before turning back to Thomas, "I feel so bad for him."

"Yeah, me too."

"Y'know, Newt said I was only slightly older than him when I first came up." I shook my head, "He must be so scared."

"Hey," Thomas whispered, reaching through a hole in the gate to hold my hand, "He's got all of us, he'll be okay."

I smiled at him softly.  _How did I get so lucky?_


	12. [09] liar

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "We have studied subject A6's reactions to fear and the survival requirements in his surroundings and we are very impressed. But, now, we must study his emotional reactions, along with that of our other subjects."  
> ↬  
> Alice went into the maze twice. Once with her brother, once with her boyfriend. It was cruel, sure, but it confirmed WCKD's suspicions - for a number of boys in Group A, Alice was their weakness.  
> ↬  
> Trial 1: In Progress.  
> ↬   
> i don't own the maze runner, in case that wasn't obvious

"Okay, yeah, that's gross."

I cracked my eyes open slightly, greeted by Minho's scrunched up face towering over me. It was bright.

He raised his eyebrows, "If you two would like to untangle yourselves, Thomas and I need to get going."

I shifted slightly, looking around. I must have fallen asleep while talking to Thomas, because I was lying on the ground by the gate of the pit, still holding his hand through the gap. He was smiling at me.

"Come on, baby," he chuckled.

 _Baby – I like that_.

Minho helped him out of the pit and passed him some extra gear – a small backpack, a flask of water and some other padding for protection. I walked to the doors with them, holding tightly onto Thomas' arm. I really didn't want to let him out there again.

They began to rumble again when we got there, parting as they did every morning. Minho looked to Thomas and me, showing us it was time for them to go.

I ran my hand up Thomas' arm, "Stay safe, please." He smiled at me, nodding. I kissed him on the cheek softly, squeezing his arm once more before he and Minho ran off.

"Alice!" Newt called, hobbling towards me, "You missed breakfast."

I nodded, still staring into the maze, "Yeah, I was saying goodbye to Thomas."

"I gathered," he chuckled, holding up the bowl in his hands, "So I thought I'd bring you some."

I smiled, taking it from him, "Thanks, Newt."

"How do you feel about going back to work today?" he asked me. "We kind of need someone to keep watch over Alby and it'll be easier if there's three of you, rather than just Clint and Jeff."

"Yeah, of course," I mumbled through a mouthful of porridge, "No problem."

"Bloody hell, don't choke," he laughed, pulling me back towards the glade, "Just focus on your food, first."

We took my dishes back to the kitchen and then he followed me to the medjack hut. Clint and Jeff were already there and I sat on the end of Alby's bed after greeting them.

Newt leant against the door frame, "I need you guys to keep an eye on him today. If any of you need to go somewhere, at least on person has to stay here, alright? And, as soon as he wakes up, you come and find me." The three of us nodded.

Not a single boy came in to see us that morning, and I could see that Clint and Jeff were quickly becoming bored. I knew there was a chance that no one was coming to us because of the allegations Gally had made against me, and it made me feel slightly sick. All the evidence was pointing against me and it was terrifying.

Clint and Jeff went to the kitchen at lunch, promising to bring me some food after they had finished eating theirs. Honestly, I was glad to have a few moments to myself. After swapping the damp cloth on Alby's forehead for a fresh one, I sat on the edge of his bed, hunching over. I held my head in my hands. The events of the past few days were starting to wear me down.

A throat clearing gained my attention. Gally was stood in the doorway, a cloth wrapped around his hand. "I need a bandage," he grunted, gesturing to his hand.

I stared at him blankly for a moment, before nodding. I got him a bandage from the drawer, walking over to him. I moved to take the cloth from around his hand but he pulled away.

"I can wrap it for you," I tried.

He scowled, trying to grab the bandage from my hands, "I can do it myself."

"Just let me-"

"I said leave it, Girlie." His hand latched onto my wrist, eyebrows raised in warning.

I looked down at his grip on me before looking him straight in the eye, "What's your problem? I'm just trying to do my job-"

"My  _problem_ , Shank, is that I don't trust you." I could feel his grip getting tighter. "Everything started going wrong as soon as you and your  _boyfriend_  showed up."

I squinted at him, "How am I supposed to know any more about any of this than you guys? None of us remember anything before getting here, including me-"

"As if I believe that," he spat. "You're not telling us everything – I know you remember more than you're letting on." He leant down closer to my face, "I think you and lover boy are planning something. There's no way you'd be that close if you'd just met."

"Aw," I cooed, pouting, "Are you jealous?"

His faced screwed up in response, to the point that I thought he might burst. He dropped the cloth in his hand and launched himself at me, shoving me back against the wall. His hands latched around my throat. "And why the  _hell_ would I be jealous of a  _stupid little girl_  who's a bad liar?" He gritted out his words, jaw clenched.

"Gally-" I choked out, struggling.

"I can see right through you, Girlie. I know you're up to something." He leant down to my ear, hands still tight around my neck, "And, when I find out what it is, you and your little boyfriend will be banished,  _just like Ben_." He lowered his voice to a whisper, "And I'll make sure you don't make it back this time."

I could feel tears pricking at my eyes as I continued to struggle against him. He stared at me a few seconds before releasing his grip on me, leaving me to stumble backwards. I grabbed hold of the table, steadying myself as I watched him pick up the cloth and bandage and storm out of the door.

\---

Clint volunteered to go and get food for Jeff and I that evening. I wasn't too keen on the idea of going out and bumping into Gally. Neither of the boys had noticed the marks on my neck in the dimly lit hut, but I knew they were easy to see if someone was paying attention.

"Alice," Jeff whispered, pulling me out of my thoughts. I looked over to where he was pointing. Alby was awake, sitting up straight on his bed. I shared a wary look with Jeff before standing up and walking over to the bed.

"Hey, Alby," I quietly called out, "You doing okay?" He didn't respond. "Alby?"

"Why are you here?" he whimpered out.

I shared a confused glance with Jeff. I turned back to Alby, "Alby, it's me, it's-"

"I know who you are, Alice," he whispered, eyes still vacantly staring at the wall. "I know what you've done."

I swallowed thickly, once again accused of something I didn't remember. "Jeff, go get Newt."

Newt arrived with a few other boys, Thomas and Minho included. "Has he said anything?" he checked.

"Yeah," I muttered, waving him over, "A little. He's not making any sense."

Newt came and stood next to me and Thomas crouched in front of Alby. "Alby," he called gently, reaching his eye line, "We may have just found a way out of the Maze. Do you hear me? We could be getting out of here."

"We can't," he whispered. "We can't leave. They won't let us."

"What are you talking about?"

"I remember."

"What do you remember?"

"You, Thomas – you and Alice." He turned around, looking me dead in the eye, "You two were always their favourite."

 _Why was it always us?_  I knew that Gally would be laughing if he were here.  _What had we done?_

I walked to the far corner of the hut, hoping that breathing would be slightly easier away from the boys. I saw Thomas stand up and follow me.

"Hey, you okay?" he checked, holding me by the shoulders.

I sniffed, "Thomas, what have we done?"

He shook his head, "I don't know, Al. I really don't." I leant back against the wall, sighing. I saw his eyebrows furrow, gaze caught on my neck. "Alice, what the-"

"It's nothing, Thomas, please-" I begged, rubbing his arm in an attempt to calm him.

"Who did this to you?"

"I had an encounter with Gally," I muttered, barely audible.

His face turned almost red, "Gally did this to you?" He moved towards the group of boys.

"Thomas, don't, please," I urged, grabbing his arm.

"He broke the rules! He's not getting away with this, Alice."

"Keep your voice down," I hissed.

"Alice-"

"Tommy," I whispered, "Please. We've got enough to worry about right now – I can't-" I shook my head. "I can't take this, too, I-"

"Okay, alright," he hushed, pulling me into his chest, "It's alright, just take a moment." I clutched his shirt in my hands, sighing against him. I could feel him kiss my hair. "It's okay."

There seemed to be a lot of noise outside. We could hear the familiar rumbling of the doors, but people seemed to be shouting. I lifted my head from Thomas' chest, taking his hand and pulling him to follow my brother outside.

Gladers were running wildly, shouting to each other, panicked. It was complete chaos.

"Winston," Newt shouted over the noise, "What's going on?"

"It's the doors," he panted, "They aren't closing."

He was right: they weren't closing. In fact,  _they were opening even wider._


	13. [10] apocalypse

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "We have studied subject A6's reactions to fear and the survival requirements in his surroundings and we are very impressed. But, now, we must study his emotional reactions, along with that of our other subjects."  
> ↬  
> Alice went into the maze twice. Once with her brother, once with her boyfriend. It was cruel, sure, but it confirmed WCKD's suspicions - for a number of boys in Group A, Alice was their weakness.  
> ↬  
> Trial 1: In Progress.  
> ↬   
> i don't own the maze runner, in case that wasn't obvious

Newt shook his head, gaping, "I've never seen that before."

Another loud rumble broke out, louder than the one before. A lot of boys cried out, covering their ears. Thomas covered mine. The small group of us that were stood together spun around. The walls were parting at the other end of the Glade too, and on either side.

"I didn't even know it did that," Chuck muttered.

A guttural screech ripped its way through the Glade. I gulped, "Was that a Griever?" Thomas nodded.

He had a look around the group. "Uh, okay, Chuck," he turned to the boy, "I want you to go to the Council Hall, okay? Start barricading the doors." Chuck nodded.

"Winston," Newt called, "You go with him."

"Got it."

"Get the others," Gally urged another boy. "Tell them to go to the forest, go hide, now!"

"Minho," Thomas started, "I want you to grab every weapon you can find. I'll meet you at Council Hall." Minho nodded, taking my brother with him. He turned to me, hands on my shoulders, "You and I are gonna go get Alby, okay?" I nodded.

"Grievers!"

We spun round at the shouts. Boys were screaming, running. The deafening screech rung out again and multiple creatures crawled out of the doors. They were slimy-bodied but with large metal legs, resembling enormous mechanical spiders.  _They were Grievers._

"Alright, everybody hide!" Thomas shouted, ushering everyone back to the huts. I froze. "Alice," he urged, grabbing my hand, "Al, come on."

The two of us sprinted towards the medjack hut, barely managing to stay on our feet. The other boys fled in panic. We pushed our way through the crops, some of the others following. The Grievers were getting closer.

"Get down!" Thomas shouted, pulling me to the ground. The others dropped too, hoping the large plants would hide us from our attackers.

It was silent for a moment. I clutched Thomas' arm, not daring to move. I could feel my heart beating so rapidly, I thought it might stop.

From nowhere, a claw shot down, latching onto Zart through the plants. I screamed and leapt forward with a few other boys, attempting to grab hold of him, but he was dragged into the air.

"Alright, go," Thomas urged, backing us all up, "Get back to the huts!"

We darted back through the crops, arriving back in the open. Thomas and I went straight to the medjack hut.

"Alby!" I called out as we arrived. Chuck and Newt emerged from the doorway with him already hanging over their shoulders.

"What's going on?" he mumbled, barely with it.

"They're here," Thomas panted, "The Grievers."

Screams continued to sound across the Glade, more boys being taken by the minute.

"Thomas," Jeff mumbled, "What do we do?"  _When did he get here?_

"Run."

We darted away from the hut, desperate to find anywhere to go. A Griever stopped us in our tracks, claw unleashing. I paused, panicking. I snatched the torch from Jeff's hand, launching it at the Griever. The beast went up in flames.

"Alright, everyone, go," Thomas urged, ushering us past the fire.

We ran through the chaos, dragging Alby with us. I had never seen anything like it.

"Keep going!" Thomas urged. There was a Griever right behind us.

The boys were struggling to carry Alby and they stumbled, dropping him. I rushed to help, trying to get him back up again.

"Get behind me," Thomas ordered, moving himself in front of the group.  _Was he insane?_

"Thomas!" I begged, unsure of what he was putting himself up to.

A spear pierced through the creature before it could get any closer. We turned, seeing Frypan had thrown it.

"Come on," he waved us over, "Let's go."

We followed him to the Council Hall, where Chuck was waiting with a few others.

"Get Alby inside," Newt ordered. Jeff and I pulled him in with Thomas' help.

"Lock down the doors!" Thomas called. We sat Alby on the floor. We could hear the screeching get louder.

Something pounded against the walls, shaking the hut. I gripped Thomas even tighter. It was silent for a moment before the creature screeched again, ripping through the room. Its claw shot down, narrowly missing our heads. The roof began to cave in, dust and dirt falling on us. We fell to the ground, buried.

"Is everyone alright?" Newt called out after a moment. A few boys murmured an affirmation. The bruises on my neck ached.

"Alice?" Thomas called out, searching the rubble.

"I'm here," I assured, grabbing his hand. He pulled me up, arms going around me.

"Help!" a boy I didn't know screamed. He was pulled from the hut before we could even move to help him.  _We were all going to die._

There was more pounding against the wall. "Move back!" Thomas screamed.

"Watch out!"

Another claw ripped into the hut, shooting through the wall. It latched onto Chuck.

"No!" Thomas screamed.

I leapt up with him, "Grab him!"

We all grabbed hold of the boy, heaving with everything we had.

"Chuck, don't let go!" Thomas told him.

"No shit," he gritted out.

Alby cried out, launching himself at the claw. It faltered, dropping Chuck into our arms. I hugged him tight.

"You okay?" Thomas checked, hand on his arm.

"Yeah, I'm fine," he spluttered, winded by the impact. He looked up, "Thanks, Alby."

I heard the Griever chittering again. My eyes widened, "Alby, watch-"

Another claw shot through the gap, latching onto him immediately.

"Grab him!" Newt screamed. We all surged forward, attempting to pull him back.

Alby didn't fight the creature. "Thomas," he called, searching for him, "Get them out." The creature took him away. I screamed, letting go as he was ripped from my arms.

"No!" Thomas all but sobbed, lurching forwards. He ran out of the door.

"Thomas, stop!"

"Don't go out there!"

"Thomas!" I screeched, running after him. The other boys followed.

The entire Glade was in flames. Everywhere I looked, something had been destroyed. Boys were still screaming, but we couldn't see anyone. It was like some kind of apocalypse.

"Where is everybody?" Chuck mumbled. There were figures walking towards us. "Who's that over there?"

As the figures came closer, I realised it was Gally and a couple of his friends. He looked pissed.

"Gally-" Thomas started, probably aiming to calm him. But Gally walked right up to him and punched him square in the face.

I cried out, rushing to Thomas' side as the other boys shouted at Gally to back off. They grabbed hold of him, pulling him backwards when he reached for me too.

"This is all you, Thomas, huh - you and your little girlfriend!" He was still struggling against the boys. "Look around! You guys heard what Alby said – they're with them!"

"Who?"

"What?"

"They're working with the people who sent us here! They sent them here to destroy everything and now they have!"

I clutched Thomas' arm. Surely, this couldn't really be our fault?

"Look around, Romeo and Juliet – this is your fault!"

The boys continued to shout at Gally, arguing with him further. Thomas bent down, picking up something from the ground. It was a piece from one of the Grievers, with a needle protruding from it. It must have been what they used to sting with.

"Maybe he's right," Thomas mumbled.

I turned to him, "Thomas-"

"Maybe this really is our fault." The boys were still arguing. I didn't know what to say. He shook his head, looking me in the eye, "I need to know what we did, Alice."

"Thomas, no," I pleaded, attempting to pull the stinger from his grasp as I realised what he was about to do. "Stop, just-"

"I need to remember," he whispered, before stabbing himself with the needle.

"Thomas!" I screeched, trying to catch him as he fell.

"Hey, no!" Newt ran over with the other boys as they watched.

Thomas hit the ground, foaming at the mouth and convulsing. I let out a sob as I watched him, horrified at what he'd done to himself.

I stood and charged at Gally, raging, "Are you happy now? Are you bloody happy?"

Newt locked his arms around me, restraining me, "Alice, stop it!"

"Let go of me!"

"Alice!" he stopped me, turning me around to face him. "It's okay, we'll figure it out."

"What did we do?" I cried. "What have we done?"

He pulled me to his chest, shushing me, "It's okay, it'll be okay." He shouted over my shoulder, "Someone find the medjacks!"

I heaved against him, " _I can't do this anymore_."


End file.
